"I have not seen any Rohingya or Bangladeshi here": Kolkata's Gulshan colony's population-voters gap as SIR begins in Bengal

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], November 20 (ANI): The government authorities on Wednesday carried out the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Gulshan Colony, a Muslim-dominated area of Kolkata. With a population of nearly 1.5 lakhs, Gulshan Colony has only around 2,500-3,000 registered voters. Help Desk incharge from TMC Mehrabuddin Khan denied the allegations of the opposition BJP that Rohingya or Bangladeshi were living here.
Help Desk incharge from TMC Mehrab Khan said, "The population of Gulshan Colony is around 1-1.5 lakhs. The number of voters is around 2500-3000. The rest of the people are in the process of becoming voters. The process of getting their votes transferred here is underway. The Gulshan Colony is around 20-25 years old. The population did not increase suddenly. It happened gradually. There was so sudden influx from anywhere. People from all corners of West Bengal have come here. Minority lives in Gulshan Colony.
"The Opposition may make many allegations. But everyone here is Indian, some from Bihar, UP, and other places. I have not seen any Rohingya or Bangladeshi here. However, it can be investigated; no one can decide."
Khan further said, "People from the poor section come and live here. Housing is affordable here... Out of 1622 voters, forms have already been distributed to 1200 voters. We are sending the remaining to their respective registered booths to get the SIR done."
Earlier, BJP State President Samik Bhattacharya asked whether there were any Indians living in Gulshan Colony, and why their names were missing from the voters' list.
"If they are Indians, then why are their names not there in the voters' list. If a fake identity card is created, then can anyone be called Indian? How was Gulshan Colony created? Who provided electrification there? Who provided water there?" He said.
Earlier, the government authorities on Wednesday carried out the SIR in Gulshan Colony.
BLO Wasim Akram said the form distribution process is almost complete in the block, with only 300 forms left to distribute.
"Distribution of forms is almost complete. The total number of voters in my block is 1,622. Distribution of forms to around 300 voters is pending. Some people live here but have their vote registered elsewhere. They came and collected the forms themselves. 5-6 per cent of people say that their names should have been on the voter list but aren't," he said.
Highlighting the issues facing the general public, he noted that several voters registered in 1995 were removed during the 2002 SIR. He further ensured that their documents were being checked to enrol their names in the voter list.
"There are people whose votes were registered in 1995 but were removed in 2002 SIR. Such people are facing problems, and their documents are being checked. A lot of people here are from other constituencies and have yet to have their voter cards transferred. There are more than 50 per cent such people," he added.
Moreover, Mohammad Anwar, a resident of Gulshan Colony, shared, "I have been living in Gulshan Colony since 2015. I got my voter card transferred here. I got it transferred here from Odisha. I don't remember when I got it done. I voted in the council elections here. I cannot remember when that was. My name was not registered here in 2002. I lived in Odisha and worked there. I did not have my house there. My daughter lived here. I bought a house here with my daughter when these buildings were being constructed. I am from Assam."
Meanwhile, the SIR aims to update voter lists across West Bengal's 294 Assembly constituencies. Over 80,000 Booth Level Officials (BLOs) are conducting house-to-house visits until December 4 to verify and update voter information. To assist voters, 659 helpdesks have been set up across the state.
The Election Commission of India launched the second phase of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls across nine states and three Union Territories, covering nearly 51 crore electors.
The states and UTs included in this phase are Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry. (ANI)