The Supreme Court on Saturday disposed of a petition filed by the All India Trinamool Congress challenging the appointment of Central government and Central PSU employees as counting personnel in the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
A special Bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Joymalya Bagchi held that no further judicial directions were required and emphasised that the Election Commission of India (ECI) must implement its circular dated April 13, 2026 in letter and spirit.
The Apex Court passed the order during an urgent hearing convened ahead of the scheduled vote counting on May 4, 2026.
The Bench declined to exercise its jurisdiction under Article 32, observing that the regulatory framework permits appointment of either Central or State government officials as counting supervisors and assistants. It noted that such administrative discretion does not, per se, violate statutory provisions governing election conduct.
Appearing for the petitioner, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal raised multiple grounds of challenge. He argued that the impugned circular was communicated belatedly, lacked empirical basis for apprehensions of irregularities, and resulted in excessive deployment of Central personnel despite the presence of micro-observers. He further contended that non-inclusion of State government nominees was contrary to the ECI’s own guidelines and created a reasonable apprehension of institutional bias, thereby offending the principles of electoral neutrality and procedural fairness.
In response, Senior Advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, appearing for the ECI, submitted that the Returning Officer, who exercises supervisory control over the counting process, belongs to the State cadre, ensuring institutional balance. He also pointed out that candidates are entitled to appoint counting agents, thereby reinforcing transparency and accountability in the counting mechanism.
The Court accepted the ECI’s submissions and reiterated that the circular envisages a randomised selection process involving both Central and State government personnel. It held that no case of arbitrariness, mala fides, or violation of Article 14 was made out to warrant judicial interference.
The petition arose from a challenge to an order of the Calcutta High Court, which had dismissed the party’s plea against a communication issued by the Additional Chief Electoral Officer mandating that at least one counting official at each table be drawn from Central government or PSU services. The High Court had upheld the measure as a safeguard to ensure integrity, transparency, and orderly conduct of the electoral process.
Before the Supreme Court, the petitioner also questioned the competence of the Additional Chief Electoral Officer to issue such directions under Section 19A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and challenged the maintainability findings of the High Court under Article 329(b) of the Constitution. It argued that judicial review under Article 226 remains available to scrutinise executive action during elections where allegations of arbitrariness or violation of the level playing field are raised.
Rejecting these contentions, the Supreme Court effectively affirmed the existing regulatory position and closed the proceedings, leaving the ECI to conduct the counting process in accordance with its notified circular and established electoral protocols.
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