NEW DELHI: Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has expressed concern over Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, saying the exercise is “being done in a hurry,” further warning that it is “unjust to voters” and could jeopardise democratic participation with the state assembly elections just months away.Speaking to PTI from Boston on Saturday, the renowned economist said that while electoral roll revisions can strengthen democracy if done carefully, the current process in Bengal lacks adequate time and fairness.“A thorough review of electoral rolls done carefully with adequate time can be a good democratic procedure, but this is not what is happening in West Bengal at this time,” Sen said.“The SIR is being done in a hurry, with inadequate time for people with voting rights to have sufficient opportunity to submit documents to vindicate their entitlement to vote in the coming assembly elections. This is both unjust to the electorate and unfair to Indian democracy,” he added.
‘I do not have a birth certificate’
Recalling his own experience during the revision process, Sen said the time pressure was evident even among Election Commission officials. “Sometimes, the officials of the Election Commission themselves seem to lack enough time,” he said.Sen said he was questioned about his right to vote from Santiniketan—his home constituency, despite having voted there earlier and having his details already recorded.“When they questioned my right to vote from my home constituency in Santiniketan – from where I have voted earlier, and where my name, address and other details are registered in official records – they questioned me about my deceased mother’s age at my date of birth, even though, as a voter herself, my mother’s details, like mine, were stored also in their own official records,” he added.The economist also highlighted documentation challenges faced by many Indians, particularly those born in rural areas. “Like many Indian citizens born in rural India (I was born in the then village of Santiniketan), I do not have a birth certificate, and my eligibility to vote required further paperwork to be presented on my behalf,” Sen said.Although his case was eventually resolved, Sen expressed concern for others who may not have the same support.“Even though I could happily say (like the Beatles) — ‘Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends’ — I worried about others who do not have so many loyal friends. My friends helped me to get through the rigid gates of the formidable EC,” he said.Sen was summoned for a hearing after a “logical discrepancy” was flagged regarding the age difference between him and his mother.
Who may be affected the most
Asked whether the SIR could benefit any political party, Sen said he could not make a definitive assessment.“I am not an election expert, so I cannot answer the question with certainty. I have been told by those who seem to know more, that the BJP will benefit from the under-accounting,” he said, adding, “I don’t know whether that is true, but the real point is that the EC should not insist on a faulty arrangement and force our proud democracy to commit an unnecessary error, no matter who benefits.”Sen warned that the poor and underprivileged are most at risk of exclusion.“An obvious answer must be the underprivileged and the poor. The documents needed for being allowed into the new electoral roll are often difficult to obtain for the underdogs of society,” he said.“The class bias that may show up in the necessary requirement of getting and showing particular documents in order to qualify to enter the new voters’ list will tend to work against the indigent,” he added.He also flagged concerns about minority communities, saying, “Indian Muslims are sometimes relegated to disadvantaged positions through the activism of the recently bolstered Hindutva extremists. Some categories of Hindus also may face discrimination and targeting.”Sen stressed that institutions must act to protect voting rights. “The EC and the Supreme Court must make sure that no adult Indian citizen has difficulty to qualify for voting,” he said.Expressing his desire to vote in the upcoming elections, Sen said it would depend on logistics.“I would very much like to do that. It depends, however, on the exact date on which my constituency’s voting is fixed,” he said, recalling that on one earlier occasion he travelled across three countries within 48 hours just to cast his vote in Santiniketan.
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