BLOs hold protest outside Bengal CEO’s office over ‘excessive’ work pressure

Booth-level officers (BLOs) engaged in the ongoing SIR process in West Bengal had altercations with police personnel on Monday while attempting to enter the Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office here during a demonstration against alleged excessive work pressure, a senior officer said.

Members of BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee marched from College Square in north Kolkata, carrying locks and fetters to symbolically close the main entrance of the building housing the CEO’s office.

High drama unfolded as a 10-member delegation — comprising four BLOs and six teachers or state government employees — entered the office of CEO Manoj Agarwal in the evening to submit their grievances. With the CEO absent, his deputy met them and accepted their memorandum.

However, as the delegation was leaving, one member alleged receiving a threat message for participating in the rally, prompting the group to launch an impromptu sit-in inside the office.

Amid the commotion, personnel of the Kolkata police and security staff at the CEO’s office physically lifted the protesters and removed them from the premises.

Earlier, during the protest, the demonstrators climbed atop the police barricade in front of the CEO’s office and raised slogans against the Election Commission, alleging that they were forced to hold the procession as the “poll panel did not respond to their complaints of intense and inhuman work pressure during the SIR exercise”.

“BLOs have been directed to complete tasks within a short period, though the same work usually takes more than two years,” a functionary claimed.

The committee also alleged that BLOs were falling sick and two of them died by suicide due to stress.

BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee had earlier announced that para-teachers, college professors and teachers from several organisations would join the march to press for immediate intervention by the Election Commission.

House-to-house enumeration under the SIR began on November 4 and will continue till December 4, with draft rolls scheduled for publication on December 9.

The committee warned that if deadlines are not extended or corrective steps are not taken, it will launch a continuous protest programme.

Meanwhile, another organisation, BLO Oikya Mancha, had separately flagged issues related to the digitisation of enumeration forms and demanded additional support staff.

It had submitted a deputation on November 22.

A senior EC official said the demands of both BLO platforms have been received by the CEO’s office but did not want to comment on their agitation.