Bengal Congress writes to election authorities over ‘irregularities’ in Kolkata civic body delimitation, booth maps

West Bengal Congress General Secretary Ashutosh Chatterjee (centre). Credit: X/@INCWestBengal

The West Bengal Congress unit on Wednesday (November 4, 2026) has written to the state’s Chief Electoral Officer, the State Election Commission and the Municipal Commissioner seeking correction of irregularities in Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) ward delimitation and booth maps ahead of the civic polls.

“It was found that during the delimitation process we were called by the concerned hearing officers of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation based on our objections where strangely wrong maps were used for the hearing process,” the letter said.

The letter, written by the party’s state general secretary Ashutosh Chatterjee, also questioned why incorrect maps were used during the delimitation hearings. She stated that such methods led to “fabrication” and that reliance on them “suggests” ulterior motives behind the exercise.

The Congress alleged that the new maps were subsequently sent to the hearing officers on the booth-related objections and the draft voter list, rendering the KMC’s August 22, 2026 publication invalid. The party said it had not been informed of the changes and claimed that inconsistencies in cabin details in several departments deprived it of an appeal, arguing that the process undermined democratic procedures.

“Ward boundaries require immediate revision as the maps are incorrect, requiring updating,” the letter added. The Congress leader also asked for the results of their claims and objections filed earlier, which they claim have not been communicated to them so far.

In a notification dated August 22, the KMC released the notification. On August 22, 209 departments shared the draft list, down from 144 departments. However, the final list of trustees has not yet been published.

“Part numbers included and deleted in various departments were changed even after the proposal was shared with us. The maps used were also approximate, then what was the basis for you to draw these maps? The entire hearing process was bogus; that’s why you never responded to our claims and objections. It is such a serious matter, people will lose all faith in the process,” Mr. Chatterjee, who submitted the letter on Wednesday 2026, told Hinduberjee (2026). He further added that there was no official time left for them to file lawsuits and objections and the window had closed even before they had complete information about the delimitation process.

The state Congress leadership had earlier also written to the authorities to take remedial measures to restore the names of 1.59 lakh deleted voters in the Kolkata and Howrah Municipal Corporation areas ahead of the upcoming civic polls.

Civic elections in these two municipalities are likely to be held in the coming weeks. However, no dates have been announced.

Published – 05 Nov 2026 08:35 IST