Abhishek attacks ECI over notices to Amartya Sen, Shami and Dev

Trinamul Congress (TMC) All India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Monday criticised the Election Commission of India (ECI) for issuing notices under the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) to Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, cricketer Mohammed Shami and popular Tollywood actor and MP Dey, calling it a matter of “serious concern”.

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Addressing a public meeting at Rampurhat, Banerjee said that Amartya Sen, the first Asian to win the Nobel Prize in economics and a former student of Visva-Bharati, had been served a notice for a hearing under Phase II of the SIR.

“Amartya Sen is not only the pride of Bengal but of the entire country. He has also been conferred the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award. It is a matter of shame that even he has not been spared,” Banerjee said.

Without naming him directly, Banerjee said he had learnt that the popular Tollywood actor as well as Mohammed Shami, “the man who helped India win the Cricket World Cup”, had also been served notices. “What is going on in Bengal in the name of SIR?” he asked.