Voices on the Streets: Kolkata March Erupts Over Voter Roll Verification, Elderly and Women Lead Protest Ahead of 2026 Polls
On Tuesday, January 27, 2026, there took place a moving and intense procession headed by West Bengal Minister Siddiqueullah Chowdhury who is also the state president of Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Hind in the heart of Kolkata. The reason behind the march was the demonstrator protesting what they claimed was rife harassment of common citizens across the Special Intensive Revision or SIR that was going on in the electoral roll in West Bengal. It started at Rajabazar, which is a crowded neighbourhood in the north-central part of Kolkata, and proceeded progressively towards Esplanade, traversing almost 4.5 kilometres. This was not merely a march–but a heart-felt manifestation of terror, exasperation and opposition. Men, women, and elderly citizens were shoulder to shoulder, with several holding placards in their hands, some with slogans to chant, others walking silently, with a tired and angry look on their faces. The main accusations were very serious.
Demonstrators argued that the residents, particularly the elderly, were made to queue hours in the voter verification process. Others claimed that they were requested to prove their identity various times even though they were long-term voters. To the elderly ones, some of who can barely walk without help, the experience proved to be humiliating and physically exhausting. Women protestors were very emotional in the manner in which they were treated with suspicion rather than respect. Siddiqueullah Chowdhury made sharp political charges to the crowd. He claimed that the Central Government was putting pressure on the Election Commission of India to conduct the Special Intensive Revision at this particular time- few months ahead of the 2026 State Assembly elections. He claimed that it was not an accident in terms of timing.
He said the exercise was a political weapon to scare and possibly disenfranchise certain parts of the society in the name of administrative procedure. What was notable today was the crowd make up.It was not a demonstration of political cadres only. Old citizens were strolling along desultory-like. The women were marching with children in their hands. Most of the participants indicated that they had never been to a protest in their lives but they felt like attending it because their voting rights, or even their dignity, were at risk. When the march entered Esplanade, they were clear and unambiguous: the electoral process should defend democracy, not scare people.
Demonstrators insisted on candor, delicacy, and responsibility during the voter correction exercise. The nation is posing even greater questions this evening due to this march. In the case of administrative actions overlapping political timescales, trust is easily broken. And when the citizens are made to feel as though they are being harassed rather than listened to, democracy as a whole becomes a stretch. This is not a protest story but an eye opener that though there is a voter ID behind every voter and a queue behind every queue there is a human being and a life behind every queue who shall not be ignored.
