The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that voters in West Bengal whose names are restored to electoral rolls by appellate tribunals at least two days before polling, will be allowed to cast their votes.
The judgement comes as a relief to Bengal voters whose names had been deleted in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists ahead of the Assembly polls.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi passed the order under Article 142 of the Constitution while hearing petitions challenging the SIR in the state.
The Court said that if appellate tribunals allow appeals and pass final orders to add or remove names from the voter list, those decisions must be implemented before the two-phase polling on April 23 and April 29.
Accordingly, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has been directed to implement tribunal orders passed by April 21 for constituencies going to polls on April 23, and by April 27 for constituencies voting on April 29, by issuing supplementary revised electoral rolls.
However, the Court clarified that people whose appeals are still pending before the tribunals will not automatically get the right to vote.
The Bench refused to grant interim relief to excluded voters who had sought restoration of their names until their appeals were decided. It said allowing such voters to cast ballots could create confusion, as objections may also be raised against those whose names were newly included in the revised rolls.
The Court noted that judicial officers from West Bengal, with assistance from officers from Jharkhand and Odisha, had completed the large-scale verification exercise within a short period of time.
It also recorded that the appellate tribunals are now fully functional after completion of training and procedural preparations.
The Court further noted that more than 34 lakh appeals have already been filed and said all of them must be decided in line with the Standard Operating Procedure already framed for the process.
The Bench also appreciated the efforts of the judicial officers handling the appeals despite difficult circumstances.
Mamata Banerjee welcomes SC order
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee welcomed the top court's order, calling it a major relief for those affected by the SIR elections.
According to an Anandabazar report, Banerjee said she had received the news while travelling from Dinhata.
“Congratulations to everyone. I had said from the beginning that people should remain patient. I am very happy and proud of the judiciary,” she said.
Banerjee also noted that she had approached the Supreme Court over the SIR exercise and said no one was happier than her after the verdict. She described the decision as an important step in protecting the voting rights of those whose names had been deleted from the rolls.
The Chief Minister also issued directions to Trinamool Congress (TMC) workers, asking them to be ready to distribute voter slips as soon as the supplementary voter lists are published. She said party workers should ensure that revised slips reach every household so that voters whose names were omitted earlier are able to cast their ballots.
