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BLO Protest in Bengal: Members of BLO Rights Defense Committee held a massive demonstration outside the Election Commission office today. Meanwhile, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari arrived there for the meeting and the dispute escalated further.
1 December, 2025
BLO Protest in Bengal: The ongoing SIR process in West Bengal has created a political upheaval in the state. Due to heavy workload, BLOs have now resorted to protest. Tension escalated outside the office of the West Bengal CEO on Monday, when members of the BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee demonstrated. The BLO committee created a huge ruckus outside the office. They raised slogans and tried to break the police barricade. At the same time, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari and several MLAs arrived for the scheduled meeting with EC officials.
Slogans raised against BJP
The committee members intensified their demonstration in the afternoon. For the last few days, booth level officers have been protesting outside the CEO’s office demanding better working conditions. Police had surrounded the area before Suvendu Adhikari’s visit, but the protesters tried to break the barricade and targeted the BJP delegation and raised slogans of “go back”.
Suvendu Adhikari reached the meeting
Officials said that the BLO committee members had a heated argument with the BJP workers gathered outside the office. Slogans and counter slogans were raised from both sides as the security personnel tried to maintain order. Amidst the commotion, Suvendu Adhikari and BJP leaders managed to enter the CEO’s office and submitted their memorandum. Suvendu Adhikari said that despite the protests outside, the meeting went on without any interruption.
VIDEO | Kolkata: West Bengal LoP Suvendu Adhikari leaves from the State Election Commission Office.
A BJP delegation led by Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari visited the office of the West Bengal CEO on Monday, triggering loud protests by members of a BLO forum, who have… pic.twitter.com/HE1EW2hWlo
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 1, 2025
Election officials refused to say anything
The BLO Rights Defense Committee has accused the administration of putting pressure on BLOs during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision Exercise, a charge rejected by the ruling Trinamool Congress. Meanwhile, BJP alleged that the protest was politically motivated and its aim was to disrupt the visit of his delegation. Election officials declined to comment on the protests. A senior official said that when Suvendu Adhikari, along with several BJP MLAs, reached the CEO’s office to meet the officials, the protesting members started raising slogans and tried to break the police barricade.
Demand for BLO committee
The BLOs are demanding relief from the “excessive workload” by extending the SIR deadline by two more months. Apart from this, there is a demand to give compensation to the family members of the deceased BLO. Even when Adhikari and other BJP MLAs entered the office to meet Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal and Special Role Observer Subrata Gupta, the protest continued.
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