Supreme Court seeks details on West Bengal voter deletion appeals

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Election Commission to provide details regarding appeals decided and those still pending before appellate tribunals in West Bengal. These tribunals were established to hear challenges against voter deletions occurring during a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant was hearing a petition by Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who requested the speedy disposal of these cases. While the court declined to set a specific timeline for the tribunals to hear appeals, it has requested comprehensive data on the status of the cases. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on August 25.

The SIR exercise was conducted under judicial supervision following allegations of irregularities. Reports indicate that approximately 91 lakh voters, nearly 11.9% of the electorate, were removed from the rolls during the process. At one stage, roughly 34 lakh appeals were reportedly pending before the tribunals.