NEW DELHI, September 29: The Supreme Court has declined to advance the hearing of a case concerning more than 37 lakh pending appeals linked to West Bengal’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, despite a request for urgent consideration ahead of the October 6 Assembly bypolls in Nandigram and Rejinagar.
The matter had earlier been listed for September 29 but is now expected to be heard on October 5, just one day before polling in the two constituencies.
Supreme Court Declines Request for Early Hearing
The request for an earlier hearing was mentioned before a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana.
Counsel argued that urgent judicial intervention was required because thousands of voter-related appeals in the two bypoll constituencies remained unresolved.
The bench, however, declined to advance the hearing.
Bypolls Scheduled for October 6
Assembly by-elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar are scheduled to take place on October 6.
The court was told that voters whose names had been excluded from the electoral rolls during the SIR process could potentially miss another opportunity to vote if their appeals remained unresolved before polling day.
The matter is now expected to be considered on October 5.
More Than 37 Lakh Appeals Still Pending
A total of 38,31,429 appeals were filed in connection with inclusion and exclusion decisions arising from the West Bengal SIR.
Of these, only 1,26,194 appeals had been decided, leaving 37,05,235 cases pending.
The scale of the backlog has become a central issue in the case.
Over 22 Lakh Appeals Filed by Deleted Voters
Of the total appeals, 22,21,118 were filed by voters challenging the exclusion or deletion of their names from electoral rolls.
Another 16,10,311 appeals challenged the inclusion of names.
The figures show that disputes over both removal and addition of electors form part of the continuing legal proceedings surrounding the revision exercise.
Thousands of Appeals Pending in Nandigram
In Nandigram, 6,443 appeals were filed in connection with the electoral-roll revision.
According to the information placed before the court, 89 voters had so far been restored to the electoral roll following the appeal process.
The unresolved cases have drawn additional attention because the constituency is among those going to the polls on October 6.
Rejinagar Also Has Large Number of Cases
In Rejinagar, 12,452 appeals were submitted following the SIR process.
Only four names had been restored based on appeals at the time of the latest filing before the Supreme Court.
The pending cases in both constituencies formed the basis of the request for an expedited hearing.
Election Commission Explains Deletion Categories
The Election Commission has said voter deletions during the revision process included several categories, including people classified as absent, shifted, dead or duplicate.
It has disputed claims that all deleted names represented similarly situated voters and has argued that different categories must be considered separately.
Number of Tribunals Could Be Increased
There are currently 19 tribunals dealing with the large number of appeals.
The Election Commission has indicated that it is prepared to increase the number to 42 tribunals in order to speed up disposal of pending cases.
Such an expansion could significantly increase the capacity available for hearing voter-list disputes.
Wider Electoral Questions Raised
The case has also raised broader concerns about constituencies where the number of pending appeals against voter deletions is greater than the winning margin in previous Assembly contests.
The Election Commission has contested aspects of that argument, saying different categories of deletions were being combined in a way it considered misleading.
SIR Dispute Remains Under Judicial Scrutiny
The West Bengal SIR process continues to face legal scrutiny over voter inclusion, deletion and the time required to resolve appeals.
The Supreme Court has not issued a final ruling on the broader disputes surrounding the revision exercise.
The immediate focus will now be on the October 5 hearing, one day before voters in Nandigram and Rejinagar are scheduled to participate in the by-elections.
Source – The Indian Express / Election Commission of India / Supreme Court Proceedings
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