Kolkata: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dilip Ghosh on Tuesday criticised West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, asserting that electoral victories are achieved through infrastructure and development rather than the declaration of public holidays.

Ghosh, speaking to reporters in Kolkata, suggested that the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government was relying on "politics of appeasement" by granting state holidays for religious festivals such as Eid, Muharram, and Shivratri. "Elections are not won by doing this kind of politics, by pleasing some community, by giving holidays... Development has to be done," Ghosh said. He added that political leadership in India should now be modelled after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claiming that "only the politics of development will work in the country."

The BJP leader also dismissed recent criticism from TMC’s Kunal Ghosh regarding the saffron party's "Rath Yatra" campaign. "This is our Parivartan Yatra," Ghosh countered. "We have set out with the resolution of change in Bengal. Whatever anyone calls this journey, it is the BJP's victory journey."

Electoral Malpractice Allegations

Ghosh also addressed the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) recent decision to suspend seven state officials over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists. The ECI has accused the officers of "serious misconduct, dereliction of duty, and misuse of statutory powers."

"The investigation found that some officials were deliberately complicating it, causing delays," Ghosh said, welcoming the move. "The truth about everyone should be brought out, and punishment should be given."

The suspension involves Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) from several sensitive constituencies, including:

  • Murshidabad District: Samserganj, Farakka, and Suti
  • Jalpaiguri District: Maynaguri
  • South 24 Parganas: Canning Purbo
  • Paschim Medinipur: Debra

Administrative Crackdown

The ECI has formally directed West Bengal Chief Secretary Nandini Chakraborty to begin disciplinary proceedings against the officials immediately. The commission's internal probe reportedly found that the officers cleared multiple voter registration cases despite a lack of required documentation and ignored clear inconsistencies in mapping data.

The crackdown follows a period of heightened tension between the state government and the poll body. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court granted a one-week extension for the publication of the final electoral roll, now scheduled for February 28, after receiving reports of violence and the destruction of election records during the revision process.

With inputs from ANI