Suvendu Adhikari said the Election Commission has approved tea garden and cinchona plantation employment records as valid documents for the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Adhikari called the decision a “major victory” and urged eligible plantation workers and tribal residents to enrol using the approved records.
ECI Clears Plantation Records For Voter Enrolment In North Bengal Districts
The approval applies to seven north Bengal districts, including Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar, according to an ECI letter shared by Adhikari.
Summary
Senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday said the Election Commission of India (ECI) has approved the use of tea garden and cinchona plantation employment records as valid proof of identity and residence for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in seven districts of north Bengal.
Adhikari, the Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, also shared on X a letter dated January 11 issued by the ECI to the state’s Chief Electoral Officer.
The letter posted by Adhikari said the Commission has conveyed its no-objection to accepting tea garden and cinchona plantation records as valid documents for SIR 2026 in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar, Alipurduar, Uttar Dinajpur and Dakshin Dinajpur districts.
In his Hindi post, Adhikari termed the decision a "major victory" for what he described as the long-neglected voices of north Bengal.
“This approval applies to the districts of North Bengal, where our hardworking tribal & forest-dwelling people and plantation workers have long been deprived of their democratic rights due to documentation hurdles and the state government's negligence,” the BJP leader said.
He urged all eligible voters in these areas to come forward and enrol themselves in the electoral rolls using their plantation employment records, adding that voting rights were the true strength of the people and essential for strengthening democracy.
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