New Delhi, February 20: The Supreme Court has decided to include judicial officers in the special intensive review (SIR) process of the voter list in West Bengal. This ruling comes in light of the ongoing deadlock between the West Bengal government and the Election Commission.
The Supreme Court instructed the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to assign currently serving and some former Additional District Judges (ADJs) to assist in resolving objections and claims presented by the public during the SIR process. The court also directed the state government to cooperate with the High Court and create a conducive working environment for this initiative.
While delivering the verdict, the court acknowledged the extraordinary circumstances in West Bengal that necessitated this decision. However, it also recognized that this directive could impact the normal court proceedings, as judges may need to dedicate time to the SIR process.
The bench, comprising Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi, heard the petition filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday.
Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the state, informed the court that the deadline had been extended to February 21. However, the Election Commission ceased document uploads on February 15. In defense of the Election Commission, lawyer D.S. Naidu accused the West Bengal government of failing to provide necessary officers.
The court expressed its displeasure with the West Bengal government’s attitude, stating that it had failed to supply qualified officers for the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) roles.
The Supreme Court also made stern remarks regarding inflammatory and threatening speeches. The Chief Justice noted that, unfortunately, such statements are often made during elections, creating a toxic atmosphere of accusations that reflects a lack of trust between the two constitutional bodies: the Election Commission and the state government.
The court has directed the Director General of Police to file an affidavit detailing the complaints received and the actions taken thus far. The next hearing on this matter is scheduled for the first week of March.
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