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SC Refuses Plea on Voter Exclusion in West Bengal SIR

The Supreme Court refused to entertain pleas from election duty officers alleging exclusion from voter rolls during West Bengal's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. Chief Justice Surya Kant directed petitioners to approach the Appellate Tribunal, stating the court cannot change orders daily. West Bengal's voter count dropped from 7.66 crore to 7.04 crore after the SIR, with about 27 lakh names deleted. Phase I of the Assembly elections recorded a 91.83% turnout, with women voters at 92.69% outpacing men.

Key Points: SC Rejects Plea on West Bengal Voter Roll Exclusion

  • SC refuses pleas of election duty officers on voter roll exclusion
  • CJI Surya Kant directs petitioners to appellate tribunal
  • West Bengal voter count drops from 7.66 crore to 7.04 crore after SIR
  • Phase I turnout at 91.83%, women lead with 92.69%
2 min read

West Bengal SIR: SC refuses to entertain pleas of election duty officers excluded from voter rolls

Supreme Court refuses to hear election duty officers' plea on exclusion from West Bengal voter rolls amid SIR exercise, citing appellate tribunal route.

"Please raise the problem before the Appellate Tribunal. We can't change our orders every day. - Chief Justice Surya Kant"

New Delhi, April 24

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain pleas of election duty officers seeking intervention on the alleged exclusion from the voter rolls amid the Special Intensive Revision exercise in West Bengal.

Counsel representing the petitioners informed the bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant that even persons engaged in election duty were being denied voting rights.

"Please raise the problem before the Appellate Tribunal. We can't change our orders every day," said the CJI.

Justice Joymalya Bagchi remarked that regardless of whether they will be able to vote this year or not, their more valuable right to remain on the rolls would be examined by the court.

The total number of voters in West Bengal stands at 7,04,59,284 voters (7.04 crore) without adding the names under adjudication, as compared to 7,66,37,529 (7.66 crore) before the SIR exercise. This shows a change of more than 61 lakh names in the list. Reportedly, about 27 lakh names were deleted in the process of adjudication.

Meanwhile, the polling for Phase I of the Assembly elections in West Bengal concluded at 6 pm on Thursday, with West Bengal recording a significantly higher voter turnout of 91.83 per cent, according to the Election Commission of India.

The high turnout figures underline an active electoral exercise as polling drew to a close amid tight security arrangements across 152 of 294 constituencies.

A key highlight was the leadership shown by women voters, who outpaced men. In West Bengal, women's turnout reached an unprecedented 92.69 per cent compared to 90.92 per cent for men. The Commission also noted significant participation from transgender persons, with 56.79 per cent turnout.

The polling for the second phase will be held on April 29, with counting of votes scheduled for May 4.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Pallavi W
91.83% turnout in Phase I! That's incredible. Women leading at 92.69% shows how Bengal's mothers and sisters are taking charge. But the deletion of 27 lakh names under SIR needs proper scrutiny. Every vote matters in democracy.
A
Aryan P
The jump from 7.66 crore to 7.04 crore voters is massive. How can 61 lakh names change so quickly? Either earlier rolls were inflated or now genuine voters are being removed. Both are serious. ECI must explain this transparently.
J
Justin A
Interesting that the SC said it can't change its orders every day. Shows the complexity. But if election officials can't vote, that's a systemic failure. Hopefully the Appellate Tribunal expedites these cases.
N
Naveen S
Bengal's women voters are setting a national example! 92.69% turnout is unprecedented. But the SIR process needs more transparency. Deletion of 27 lakh names is too large a number to ignore. Democracy cannot afford such doubts.
L
Lakshmi X
Respect to the election duty officers who work so hard for our democracy yet face voting issues themselves. Hope the appellate mechanism works quickly. Meanwhile, kudos to Bengal for high turnout, especially transgender participation at 56.79% - inclusive democracy in action! ✨

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