Amartya Sen’s Interview on Electoral Rolls and Class Bias

• Nobel laureate Amartya Sen warns against a targeted revision of electoral rolls, as seen in Bihar, which could lead to significant bias and make the election less truthful.

• He emphasizes the importance of an unbiased Election Commission and the Supreme Court’s active and fair supervision of the electoral roll.

• Sen argues that India is a country for all citizens, and no part of the nation should be discriminated against.

• He also criticizes the tendency of political movements within India to portray many Bengali Indians as immigrants from Bangladesh.

• Sen questions the support for the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls and the potential disenfranchisement of large groups during the roll revision process.

• He also questions the alleged atrocities against poor migrant Bengali workers in BJP-ruled states.

• Sen believes that the illusion of political gain from cultivated discord will be temporary and that the BJP’s efforts in West Bengal to promote Hindutva in preparation for the State elections next year will be met with resistance.