Bengal BLOs stage protest demanding to know why time for SIR 1st phase not extended

Kolkata: A section of booth-level officers (BLOs) on Friday staged a protest outside the office of the CEO here, demanding to know why the EC did not extend the time for the first phase of the SIR in West Bengal despite granting extensions to other states.

The protesters said that despite the end of deadline on December 11 for filling up enumeration forms, new guidelines have been sent to them on Thursday night by the EC.

Members of the BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee held a sit-in in front of the office of the chief electoral officer, alleging that the commission had been issuing "new instructions even after the enumeration phase", further increasing pressure on ground-level officials.

The protesters said BLOs across the state had been under "tremendous mental and physical pressure" since the SIR exercise began, claiming that several officers had "broken down during training programmes" because of the workload.

They also cited reports of multiple deaths of BLOs in different districts since the commencement of the SIR process.

The agitating officers questioned why the Election Commission had not announced any compensation for BLOs who fell ill or died while on SIR-related duty.

"The state government provides compensation for election-duty casualties. Why is the EC denying even basic support to BLOs who fall ill while performing mandatory duties?" one of the protesters asked.

The protesters said the refusal to extend the SIR deadline in West Bengal, unlike in several other states, had left BLOs "demoralised and overburdened" and demanded immediate parity.

Leaders of the committee alleged that despite repeated representations and earlier demonstrations at the CEO's office, their core demands relating to workload, deadlines and medical safeguards remained unaddressed.