Bengal govt welcomes SC order permitting Calcutta HC to deploy additional judicial manpower for SIR

The directions were issued by a bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant after the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court flagged a shortage of officers to verify over 50 lakh objections under the 'Logical Discrepancy' category within the existing timeframe.

The High Court had noted that even 250 judicial officers would require approximately 80 days to complete the verification.

The TMC government in the state, in a press release, said that in a significant development before the Supreme Court today, the voters of West Bengal secured critical clarifications and directions safeguarding the rights of eligible electors in the ongoing SIR process.

To ensure effective implementation within the prescribed timelines, civil Judges in West Bengal with three (3) years of service have been permitted to participate in the process. As a measure of last resort, the Chief Justice may consider requisitioning Judges from the neighbouring States of Jharkhand and Odisha, the press release said.

Noting the SC's directions, the West Bengal government said that the Supreme Court has categorically directed that both online and physical copies of documents received by the ERO/AERO on or before February 14 must be considered by the designated Judicial Officers, irrespective of whether such documents were uploaded on the ECINet Portal.

This clarification assumes particular significance in view of the fact that the option to upload documents on the ECINet Portal was suddenly disabled, resulting in technical impediments beyond the control of voters and field officials.

The Court has reinforced the primacy of the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) in certifying that documents were received on or before February 14. Such certification shall be determinative for the purposes of consideration by the Judicial Officers.

According to the press release, the SC has clarified unequivocally that all twelve (12) documents specified in the notifications dated October 27, 2025, read with June 24, 2025, issued by the Election Commission of India shall be considered. In addition, Aadhaar as proof of identity has been added consistently with the Court's earlier order in the Bihar SIR proceedings. Madhyamik Admit Cards, as recognised by the Court in its order dated January 19.

The court has also directed that the First Electoral List shall be published on February 28 to be followed by publication of Supplementary Lists, which will be part of the final electoral roll.

This direction has been expressly issued in exercise of the Court's plenary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution of India that voters in the supplementary list will be part of the final voter list. All Supplementary Lists shall be "deemed" to have been published on February 28, ensuring full protection of the right to vote, the press release said. (ANI)