SC Urges Quick Decision on Lawyer’s Plea Against Bengal SIR
Top court asks appellate tribunal to decide advocate’s challenge within two months, noting his long-standing residence and professional presence in West Bengal.
New Delhi, June 20: The Supreme Court on Friday requested an appellate tribunal to expedite proceedings in a case filed by a senior advocate whose name was removed from the electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise conducted in West Bengal.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice V. Mohana observed that the petitioner appeared to be a genuine resident of the state and deserved a timely hearing of his grievance. The court was informed that the 75 year old lawyer had been practicing in Murshidabad for nearly five decades and had previously been enrolled as a valid voter before the revision exercise led to the removal of his name from the voters’ list.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel submitted that an appeal challenging the deletion had already been filed before the designated appellate authority. However, despite the passage of time, no decision had been delivered on the matter.
Taking note of the submissions, the bench remarked that the petitioner appeared to have a strong connection with West Bengal and acknowledged the mechanism already established for addressing such disputes arising from the electoral roll revision process.
The court subsequently disposed of the petition while requesting the appellate tribunal to hear and decide the appeal as quickly as possible, preferably within a period of two months.
The issue stems from the large-scale Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls undertaken in West Bengal, which resulted in the deletion of numerous names and generated a substantial number of claims and objections from affected individuals.
To manage the massive volume of cases, nearly 700 judicial officers from West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand were deployed to examine around 60 lakh claims and objections linked to the revision exercise.
Earlier, following directions from the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court constituted 19 appellate tribunals headed by retired chief justices and former judges of various high courts. These tribunals were tasked with hearing appeals filed by individuals contesting the removal of their names from electoral rolls.
The latest order underscores the judiciary’s emphasis on ensuring that electoral grievances are resolved promptly through the established legal framework, particularly in cases involving long-time residents seeking restoration of their voting rights.
The appellate tribunal will now examine the advocate’s challenge and determine whether his name should be reinstated in the electoral records under the applicable provisions governing the revision process.
