The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal has provided a crucial clarification regarding recent hearing summons issued to Nobel laureate Amartya Sen and Indian cricketer Mohammad Shami. The notices were part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll and stemmed from routine verification procedures, not from any specific complaint or allegation against the individuals.
Routine Scrutiny Uncovers Blank Columns
According to the official statement, the action was initiated after scrutiny teams examined the enumeration forms submitted during the revision process. The scrutiny revealed a specific technical discrepancy: the mandatory linkage columns in the forms had been left blank by the concerned electors. This procedural gap triggered the standard protocol of issuing a hearing notice to allow the electors to complete or correct their information.
The CEO's office emphasized that this is a standard administrative step within the SIR framework. The Special Intensive Revision is a detailed exercise aimed at ensuring the accuracy and purity of the voter list, and such verifications are common when submitted documents are incomplete or require clarification.
Clarifying the Process and Timeline
The news, which was reported by PTI on January 7, 2026, had sparked speculation. The CEO's clarification aims to put the record straight, noting that the summons to high-profile names like Amartya Sen and Mohammad Shami are purely part of the electoral machinery's due diligence. The process is designed to be impartial and is applied uniformly to any voter whose form raises queries during verification.
The objective is to give every citizen a chance to rectify inadvertent errors in their enrollment details before the final list is published. Officials stated that leaving linkage columns blank is a common oversight, and the hearing is the prescribed method to resolve it.
Implications and Standard Protocol
This episode highlights the meticulous nature of the voter list revision process in West Bengal. The issuance of hearing notices under SIR provisions is a routine corrective measure, not an accusatory one. The CEO's intervention clarifies that no special scrutiny was directed at Sen or Shami personally; their cases were flagged by the system based on the incomplete data field.
The standard next steps for the individuals involved would be to appear before the designated electoral registration officer or submit the required information to satisfactorily complete the linkage in their voter registration details. The administration's move to explain the context proactively helps in maintaining transparency around electoral procedures and dispelling unnecessary rumors.
