SC orders deployment of judicial officers for Bengal SIR

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday, February 20, directed the Calcutta High Court to assign judicial officers to help complete the Special Intensive Revision in West Bengal, calling it an “extraordinary situation.”

The bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and NV Anjaria asked for a status report on the alleged incidents of violence during SIR in the state, saying it is a result of a trust deficit.

“There is an unfortunate scenario of allegations and counter allegations which shows trust deficit between two constitutional functionaries… that is the state government and the Election Commission. Now, the process is stuck at the stage of claims and objections of the people who have been included in the discrepancy list,” CJI Kant said.

The top court instructed the High Court to assign both current and retired district judges to focus on the state’s SIR. The bench said it passed an “extraordinary order” due to the circumstances.

“In order to ensure fairness in adjudication of genuineness of documents submitted and consequent inclusion or exclusion in voter list. We are left with hardly any other option but to request the Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court to spare some serving judicial officers along with some former judicial officers in the rank of ADJ or district judges, who can then in each district help in disposing or revisiting the claims under the logical discrepancy list,” the Supreme Court observed.

The state is required to provide Group A officers for the roles of Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) and Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), the court said. However, the bench noted that it is “impossible” for the court to verify the actual rank of the officials assigned by the state as Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs).

CJI Kant made strong remarks against the state, saying, “A situation is being created where judicial officers have to intervene. We were expecting cooperation from the state. Is this the level of communication from the state? For the February 9 order, you responded on February 17. You are saying the state government is examining the officers. Examining, how? You should have written that 8,500 officers are sent.”

“We are not microobservers. We are disappointed to see this. We thought states would cooperate. We don’t want private explanations,” Chief Justice Kant said.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had taken the SIR to the Supreme Court in February, citing discrepancies in the SIR process in the state, while the EC dismissed them as false claims.