Amartya Sen raises concerns over SIR in Bengal, says process being done with ‘undue hurry’

Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has raised concerns over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in West Bengal, warning that it is being conducted with “undue hurry,” which he said might jeopardise democratic participation, particularly with the West Bengal Assembly Elections approaching in a few months.

“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 told news wire PTI during an interview.

The 92-year-old economist stressed that such an exercise must be conducted with care and adequate time, conditions he believes are “missing” in Bengal’s case.

Sen said the “SIR is being done in a hurry” – leaving people with inadequate time to have “sufficient opportunity” to submit documents to prove their eligibility for the upcoming Assembly Elections. “This is both unjust to the electorate and unfair to Indian democracy.”

According to a report by PTI, Sen was summoned for a hearing after a “logical discrepancy” was flagged by the EC over an age difference between him and his mother, Amita Sen, in the electoral rolls.

“Sometimes, the officials of the Election Commission themselves seem to lack enough time.

“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 said.

The celebrated economist went on to describe the documentation challenges he encountered, noting that these difficulties are common for many Indians 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,” he said.

Although the issue was eventually resolved for him, Sen expressed concern for citizens who lack similar access to assistance.

“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.