Supreme Court Satisfied With Bengal Voter Roll Revision

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed satisfaction over the progress of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, noting that around 47.4 lakh objections out of 60 lakh had been disposed of as of March 31.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi, said, "We are quite happy and very optimistic about the facts and figures."

The court noted that nearly 1.75 lakh to 2 lakh objections are being adjudicated daily.

It was informed that the Election Commission of India has constituted 19 appellate tribunals, headed by former High Court Chief Justices and judges, to hear appeals related to inclusion or exclusion from voter lists. The tribunals are expected to begin functioning after completion of orientation for members in Kolkata over the next eight weeks.

The bench directed that tribunals be given full access to records of the poll panel, including reasons recorded by around 700 judicial officers from West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand, and stressed that such reasons must be made available to the parties concerned.

It said tribunals may frame their own procedures in line with principles of natural justice but cautioned against accepting fresh documents without verifying their authenticity. The court also directed the Election Commission and the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal to ensure timely payment of honorarium and expenses to judicial officers, tribunal members and staff.

It asked the poll panel to either extend the lease of existing premises housing the tribunals or arrange alternative accommodation.

The bench noted that the tribunals would hear appeals from individuals whose names have been excluded from voter lists as well as from authorities against alleged wrongful inclusions.

Taking note of inputs from the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, the court observed that pending objections are likely to be disposed of by April 7. The matter, including a plea filed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, has been posted for further hearing on April 6.