‘Elections cannot be conducted in West Bengal without central forces,’ says BJP's Dilip Ghosh

On the issue of deployment of central forces in West Bengal, BJP leader Dilip Ghosh on Saturday said that elections cannot be conducted without central forces.

Published on: Feb 28, 2026, 11:06:26 IST

ANIPosted by Yamini C S

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

On the issue of deployment of central forces in West Bengal, BJP leader Dilip Ghosh on Saturday said that elections cannot be conducted without central forces, citing tensions and incidents of violence during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in the state.

He said the SIR was conducted in the state amid tensions and violence, and the election is a difficult task that cannot be conducted without central forces.

"The SIR was conducted in the state amid tensions and violence. Election is a difficult task and cannot be conducted without central forces. People demanding central forces during the election", he told ANI.

ALSO READ | Centre to deploy 480 CAPF companies for West Bengal assembly elections

Speaking on the BJP's Parivartan Yatra, he alleged that the state government is not granting permission for the yatra but asserted that the party has the court's approval to proceed.

"State government is not giving permission for yatra, but we have the court's permission and will go ahead with it. People want change in this upcoming election", he said.

ALSO READ | West Bengal SIR: Supreme Court rejects TMC’s challenge to EC’s training of judges

Earlier this week, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed concern over the ongoing SIR procedure, suggesting that around 1.20 crore names are projected to get deleted from the electoral roll. The CM called it a question of democratic rights, adding that the issue transcends party lines and religious identities.

Earlier on Tuesday, the West Bengal government welcomed the Supreme Court's decision to permit the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to deploy additional civil judges with three years of experience and, if required, seek assistance from the Chief Justices of Jharkhand and Odisha for verifying objections under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter rolls in the state.

ALSO READ | Police summon son-in-law of suspended TMC MLA Humayun Kabir in narcotics case

The directions were issued by a bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant after the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court flagged a shortage of officers to verify over 50 lakh objections under the 'Logical Discrepancy' category within the existing timeframe.

The High Court had noted that even 250 judicial officers would require approximately 80 days to complete the verification.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yamini C S
Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More

Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather and major national developments.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.