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Malda: In the border districts of West Bengal, a pervasive sense of dread has taken root. Driven by the state government’s aggressive new “detect, delete, and deport” policy, the sudden emergence of fortified holding centres and a controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls have left minority communities terrified of being branded foreigners in their own land. Holding centres have been established in the state to house undocumented migrants pending deportation.

“I have kept the voter IDs, Aadhaar cards, and ration cards of everyone in my family close at hand. Even when I go to the market, I carry my voter ID and Aadhaar card with me. This has become a habit over the past two months. I will not deny that a fear is working inside me, and that is because of my religious identity,” said Taimur Khan of Mothabari in Malda.

The SIR exercise, conducted ahead of the 2026 assembly elections, has become central to the present fear. The revision led to the deletion of around 91 lakh voters in West Bengal, amounting to nearly 10.9% of the state’s electorate, disproportionately affecting Muslims. 

A holding centre in Malda. Photo: Joydeep Sarkar.

“I couldn’t vote this time because of SIR. Three people in my family do not have their names on the list. Now, I don’t know when a lawyer will fight our case,” said Gulshan Sheikh of Lalgola. “The police are arresting many people by labelling them as Bangladeshis. Our past seven generations have grown up on this soil, but there was never such danger before.”

Murshidabad and Malda were among the districts most affected.

Murshidabad, a Muslim-majority district with large riverine and erosion-prone areas, saw over 4.55 lakh voters not found eligible to be in the electoral rolls and placed under adjudication, while in Malda, 2.93 lakhs lost their voting rights after the judicial........

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