New Delhi

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to visit West Bengal on December 29 and 30. During his two-day stay in Kolkata, he is expected to hold meetings with the state BJP's core group leaders.

According to a BJP sources, the meetings will focus on reviewing the party's preparedness and strategy for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections. The Home Minister is expected to assess organisational strength, booth-level planning, and coordination among party leaders ahead of the crucial polls.

The visit is seen as significant in view of the BJP's renewed focus on West Bengal, with the central leadership intensifying efforts to strengthen the party's electoral strategy in the state.

West Bengal is set to undergo Legislative Assembly elections in 2026.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also visit West Bengal on December 20. During his visit, PM Modi will address a rally in Taherpur in Nadia district.

PM Modi's visit comes amid Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress's opposition to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in the state.

Earlier on Tuesday, West Bengal Assembly Leader of Opposition and senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari took a sharp jibe at the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), asserting that the BJP fights elections without relying on what he termed as fake, dead or illegal voters, amid the ongoing debate of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state.

Speaking on the voter list revision exercise, Adhikari said the BJP believes in transparent electoral practices and does not resort to proxy voting. "We are honest people. The BJP does not contest elections by relying on dead voters, fake voters and Bangladeshi infiltrators. The BJP doesn't indulge in proxy voting. Everything has been exposed regarding what is in the voter list in Bengal," he said, claiming that the SIR has brought out irregularities that existed for years.

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The Election Commission of India (ECI) has completed the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls as part of preparations for the next West Bengal Assembly elections, expected to be held in March-April 2026. The draft rolls released on Tuesday show that 58,20,899 names, about 7.59 per cent of the total electorate, have been provisionally deleted on grounds such as death, permanent migration, or untraceability.

According to the ECI, out of over 7.66 crore registered electors in the state, more than 7.08 crore had submitted enumeration forms by December 11. The poll body has clarified that the draft list is not final and that eligible voters whose names are missing can seek inclusion during the claims and objections period.