LoP Adhikari accuses KMC of issuing birth certificates to save suspect people from SIR exercise

Kolkata, Nov 6 (IANS) Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday alleged that Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has been distributing birth certificates to suspect individuals so that their names are not removed from the voters' list after the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

In a social media post, LoP Adhikari said that he has written to the Municipal Commissioner of the KMC, demanding comparative data from October 6 to November 5 and for the corresponding period of the previous year of 2024, on total Certificates issued, certificates issued to non-residents outside the KMC's jurisdiction, certificates issued in case of Late Registrations (specifically born before 2007) and certificates for recent births.

"It has come to my knowledge that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is indulging in illegal, immoral, and unethical mass distribution of Birth Certificates; not meant for genuine citizens, but to facilitate and accommodate suspicious individuals who are at the risk of being removed from the Voter List during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise," claimed Adhikari in an X post

The BJP leader informed that he also filed an RTI application with the KMC Health Department seeking detailed data on Birth Certificates issued in the last 30 days.

"This is nothing but a blatant attempt to manipulate Electoral Rolls and undermine the Democratic process. Birth Certificates are legal documents meant for citizens of our country; generally newborns or in some extremely rare cases; people seeking genuine late registrations," he said.

"Birth Certificates are not tools for political engineering, with the malafide intention of changing the demography for vested political interests," he asserted.

He further urged the Election Commission to investigate the malpractice which he has raised.

"Any attempt to bypass legal norms under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, will not be tolerated. I urge the Election Commission of India and concerned authorities to immediately investigate this malpractice to facilitate illegal infiltrators," added the BJP leader.

--IANS

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