West Bengal elections: PM Modi pledges citizenship for Matua Namasudras under CAA | India News – The Times of India

In poll-bound West Bengal, the Matua-dominated belt of North 24 Parganas and Nadia is heading into the second phase of voting on April 29 with an unusual complication. A large section of the electorate is unsure if it will be able to vote at all.The uncertainty stems from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which has led to significant deletions in Matua-heavy constituencies.In North 24 Parganas alone, around 3.25 lakh names have been struck off the voter list following the exercise.Data from the Bongaon subdivision, a core Matua pocket, shows deletion rates ranging between 67 per cent and 88 per cent among those placed under adjudication.In Gaighata, 16,222 out of 22,278 flagged voters were removed, while Bagdah recorded over 15,000 deletions. Similar patterns have been reported across Bongaon North and South.Across Nadia constituencies such as Krishnanagar North, Krishnanagar South, and the Ranaghat segments, over 90 per cent of those under scrutiny did not make it to the final rolls. Administrative estimates suggest a substantial proportion of those affected belong to the Matua Namasudra community.PM Modi also offered prayers at Thakurbari, the main temple of the Matua Mahasangha at Thakurnagar in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district before his poll rally in the area.His visit to the headquarters of the community, housing the shrines of the sect’s founders Hari Chand and Guru Chand Thakur, is seen as an outreach to Matua voters who influence at least 34 assembly seats directly and another two dozen along the Bangladesh border.Their backing had played a crucial role in the BJP’s strong showing in the 2021 Assembly polls.Founded in the 19th century by Hari Chand Thakur, the Matua Mahasangha is a socio-religious movement that has historically worked for the upliftment of the Namasudra community through education and social reform.Modi had visited the Thakurnagar shrine in 2019 and also paid homage at Orakandi in Bangladesh in 2021.