The Winter Session of Parliament got off to a stormy start on Monday, with the Opposition parties, led by the Congress, forcing adjournments in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the mounting human cost it has exacted on Booth Level Officers (BLOs).At the centre of the controversy is the heartbreaking spate of suicides by BLOs placed under immense pressure to complete the massive voter-list purification drive in a compressed timeline. 

Opposition claims the toll has crossed 40 in the past month alone, with at least 14 leaving behind suicide notes explicitly citing work-related stress and alleged harassment. A BJP spokesperson strongly defended the government and the Election Commission. He made it clear that an investigation has been ordered into every case, but let us look at the facts, quoting Supreme Court observations that not a single voter had come forward to challenge alleged mass deletions despite Opposition claims of lakhs of names being removed.

He also accused the Opposition of “disruptive negative politics” and cited multiple instances in West Bengal where Trinamool Congress leaders and MLAs have allegedly threatened BLOs against removing suspected Bangladeshi infiltrators from the rolls. He named TMC MLAs and leaders who, according to reports, publicly warned of violence against officers carrying out the exercise. He also quoted Union Minister Kiren Rijiju’s statement on the floor of the house that the government is willing to discuss SIR.

A Congress leader however, countered saying that the real issue is the “arrogance” of an Election Commission whose members are hand-picked by the ruling party after the government allegedly circumvented a Supreme Court directive on the appointment process. He expressed anguish saying that 41 election workers dead in 27 days was not something which could be ignored.

He further alleged that the EC wants to finish a gigantic exercise in weeks instead of months “only because the government wants it rushed”. He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of doing “drama outside Parliament” while refusing to face questions inside. He also slammed the government for scheduling the shortest winter session in history (15 days) while pushing 13 major bills, ten of which have not even been sent to standing committees.

An independent political analyst criticized the Congress-led INDIA bloc for repeatedly falling into what he called the “BJP’s trap” of creating ruckus instead of using parliamentary rules to force a structured debate. “There are procedures — Rule 193, Rule 267, adjournment motions. Use back-channel negotiations the way Parliament functioned for decades. Don’t piggy-back on tragic deaths without evidence,” he said, while agreeing that the EC should extend the SIR timelines till at least January-end to reduce pressure on BLOs.

Another analyst was far harsher on the ruling party. “The government simply does not want an Opposition. ‘Congress-mukt Bharat’ was never a joke — it is the agenda,” he alleged, questioning why the EC insists on completing the exercise in 30–40 days when assembly elections in several states are still over a year away. He questioned that if the goal is clean voter lists, why not give three months so that BLOs are not driven to suicide.

Inside Parliament, the Treasury benches maintained that all issues, including SIR, can be discussed if the House is allowed to function. Opposition MPs, however, continued sloganeering and displayed placards demanding an immediate statement from the Prime Minister and suspension of the SIR exercise until an independent inquiry into the deaths is completed.

With neither side showing signs of climbing down, the 2025 Winter Session appears headed for yet another near-total washout — the third consecutive session marred by deadlock after the Monsoon and Budget sessions earlier this year. As one distraught family after another mourns a BLO lost to extreme work pressure, the political slugfest shows no sign of pausing to address the human tragedy unfolding on the ground.