The Election Commission of India has informed the Supreme Court that more than 22 lakh appeals have been filed by individuals challenging their exclusion from the electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal.
In an affidavit submitted before the Court, the poll panel stated that 38,31,429 appeals have been filed before the appellate tribunals constituted to adjudicate disputes arising from the revision of electoral rolls. Of these, 22,21,118 appeals relate to claims by persons seeking restoration of their names, while another 16,10,311 appeals challenge the inclusion of names in the electoral rolls.
The figures were furnished in response to the Supreme Court’s directions concerning the volume and disposal of appeals generated by the SIR exercise. The Election Commission disclosed that the tribunals have so far disposed of 1,26,194 appeals, leaving 37,05,235 matters pending adjudication.
In view of the substantial pendency, the Commission has proposed an expansion of the existing appellate mechanism. It has suggested increasing the number of tribunals from the present 19 to 42, corresponding to the number of parliamentary constituencies in West Bengal.
The ECI has also told the Court that the technological infrastructure developed for handling these proceedings would permit the tribunals to function without requiring adjudicating officers to remain physically stationed at a particular location. According to the Commission, the software is “location-agnostic” and would enable officers to hear and determine cases from locations of their convenience.
The poll panel has further contested attempts to draw a direct connection between the number of names deleted during the SIR process and the electoral outcome in the State. It has maintained that merely comparing deletions with victory margins in individual constituencies cannot establish that the revision exercise altered the result of an election.
The Commission has explained that the electoral roll exercise covered several categories of entries, including voters who were reported to be absent, had shifted residence, were deceased or appeared to have duplicate entries. It has therefore argued that the figures relating to deletions have to be assessed alongside the statutory mechanism available to affected persons to challenge such exclusions.
The Supreme Court is presently examining the implementation of the SIR exercise and the mechanism established for adjudicating claims and objections arising from the revision. The large number of pending appeals has brought the capacity and structure of the appellate tribunals under the Court’s scrutiny.
The post West Bengal SIR: Over 22 lakh appeals challenge voter exclusions, ECI tells Supreme Court appeared first on India Legal.