Archive · 7 Nov 2025
Enclave Dwellers' Wives Fear Exclusion from Bengal Electoral Rolls
In a part of India called West Bengal, there's a special list of people who are allowed to vote, and it's being updated.
Some women used to live in special areas that used to belong to another country but are now part of India.
These women got married before 2015 and moved away from these areas to live with their husbands' families.
Because they moved, they weren't counted when officials did a headcount in 2015 to make the voting list.
Now, they are worried they won't be on the new voting list because they don't have the right papers from that time.
They've given lists of their names to the local government to try and fix this.
Election officials say they will look into these cases separately to make sure everyone who should vote gets a chance.
Hundreds of women from former enclaves in Cooch Behar fear being excluded from West Bengal's draft electoral rolls for SIR 2026.
These women were married and moved out of the enclaves before the 2015 headcount, making them ineligible for inclusion based on current criteria.
The current electoral roll revision is based on the 2002 electoral rolls, which do not include these women, and a 2015 headcount that missed them.
Residents have submitted lists of approximately 450 women to the district administration, highlighting their plight.
Election officials have assured that cases of women married before 2015 will be handled separately by Electoral Registration Officers.
- Who
- Wives of former enclave dwellers, residents of former enclaves in Cooch Behar, district administration, Election Commission officials (including West Bengal CEO Manoj Agarwal).
- What
- Hundreds of women fear exclusion from the draft electoral rolls for SIR 2026 because they were married and moved out of their original enclaves before 2015 and were not included in the 2015 headcount.
- When
- The issue surfaced around November 7, with the draft electoral rolls set to be published on December 9. The enclave exchange occurred in August 2015.
- Where
- Former enclaves in Cooch Behar, West Bengal.
- Why
- These women lack necessary documentation to be included in the current electoral roll revision process, which is based on 2002 rolls and a 2015 headcount that didn't include them due to their marital status and relocation prior to the exchange.
Enclave Residents and Wives
Election Commission and District Administration
Inclusion in Electoral Rolls
Enclave Residents and Wives
Hundreds of women, married before 2015 and living outside former enclaves, fear being left out of the draft electoral rolls because they weren't part of the 2015 headcount and are not on the 2002 rolls. They have submitted lists of approximately 450 women to the district administration.
Election Commission and District Administration
The Election Commission (EC) has verbally assured inclusion of enclave dwellers not on the 2002 rolls using 2015 headcount records. The West Bengal CEO stated that cases of women married before 2015 will be handled separately by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) as per EC guidelines, with assurances of 'hand-holding'.
Basis for Electoral Rolls
Enclave Residents and Wives
They are concerned that the 2002 electoral rolls, used as the basis for the current SIR 2026 exercise, do not reflect the current population, especially married women who moved out of enclaves before 2015.
Election Commission and District Administration
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026 is based on the 2002 electoral rolls, with efforts to include those identified in the 2015 headcount of enclave residents who were granted Indian citizenship.
- Location
- Cooch Behar, West Bengal
- Process
- Special Intensive Revision (SIR) 2026 of electoral rolls
- Affected Population
- Approximately 450 women (former enclave dwellers married before 2015 and living outside the enclaves), with more names expected.
- Key Concern
- Fear of exclusion from draft electoral rolls due to lack of documentation and not being part of previous headcounts.
- Documentation Basis
- 2002 electoral rolls and 2015 headcount records for enclave exchange.
- Timeline
- Draft electoral rolls to be published on December 9; women's names submitted to district administration on Friday (November 7).
- Legal/Administrative Context
- 1974 Land Boundary Agreement, 2015 enclave exchange, Supreme Court 2022 verdict (relevant to sex workers but highlights rights issues for marginalized groups).
Sources
Mamata denies receiving SIR enumeration form, calls reports ‘false and misleading’
‘Won’t fill my SIR form till all of Bengal does’: Mamata, a day after BLO’s visit to her residence
Why the Election Commission is right to exclude Assam from the current SIR exercise, and why the Left's outrage is just opportunism
Mamata Banerjee Livid After Trinamool Mouthpiece Reports She Filled SIR Form
SIR in West Bengal: Can you submit the enumeration form online? Link, process & other FAQs answered
SIR in Bengal: EC officials hold review meetings in Alipurduar, Cooch Behar
Election Commission officials review SIR exercise with 11 TN collectors
Bengal SIR: From queries about house visits to voters abroad, BLOs flooded with questions
Over 2 cr enumeration forms distributed in Bengal as part of SIR: Official
Calcutta HC seeks ECI’s response to plea against SIR in West Bengal; Mamata denies receiving enumeration form
Didi: Won't Fill Up SIR Form Until All Others Do; 3 More Deaths Over SIR Fear In WB
SIR: Booth-level officers struggle with high-rise form drive among residents - Telegraph India
As SIR takes place in Bengal, migrant workers in Noida calculate the costs of returning home
‘You need not worry’: At TMC’s SIR help camps in Bengal, voices of assurance
'Bangla Bachao Yatra': CPM plans rally to ‘protect electoral rights’ in the name of SIR
SIR: Suvendu accuses KMC of illegally issuing birth certificates
Frequently asked questions on SIR - Telegraph India
How to fill up the SIR form: A primer - Telegraph India
SIR in Bengal: 2.10 crore enumeration forms distributed in three days
SC to Hear on Nov 11 Pleas Challenging EC's Decision to Conduct Pan-India SIR Exercise
Sukanta slams TMC for spreading false information on CAA camps
‘SIR-linked death’ count in Bengal rises to 10 as kin of two more deceased cite voter-list ‘stress’
SC to hear on Nov 11 pleas challenging EC’s decision to conduct pan-India SIR exercise
No eligible voter can be left out: CEO Manoj Kumar Agrawal in Alipurduar
Old Video Shared as Recent Visuals of Protests Against SIR in West Bengal
Missed the BLO’s visit? Here’s how to contact your BLO during the Special Intensive Revision in Bengal
Trinamool flags ‘contradictory’ EC directions on relatives allowed in Bengal SIR forms - Telegraph India
Who, Really, Is A 'Ghuspaithiya' In Bengal?
Anxious over SIR, sex workers in Kolkata's Sonagachi fear exclusion in voter roll update - Telegraph India