West Bengal SIR : Live Updates From Supreme Court Hearing

Banerjee: Last order, please see

CJI: We will issue contempt notice (over the application). We must respond in the language they want

Guruswamy: Please don't penalize all these mapped voters

J Bagchi: If we wanted to penalize, we would not have gone into this enormous exercise. Dragging in officers from neighboring states. Final list has already been published. Proviso to S.23 will perhaps not come to your aid, but we will come to your aid and permit add-ons

Guruswamy: As per ongoing speed, exercise may not be completed in time

J Bagchi: We will take a call

Banerjee: Supplementary list should be published. I must know reasons for rejection.

CJI: Day before voting, this exercise will complete. If officers are able to [scan 40] lakhs, cause of action qua them disappears. We will consider the rest at apt. stage.

Guruswamy: We are not questioning JOs

CJI: You don't know the story...this is absolutely premature

Guruswamy: I am not on the application

CJI: One petitioner has filed the application

Guruswamy: We don't know who. Not us. I am on this - JOs have 50 lakh cases broadly. 47 lakhs are mapped. These are genuine bonafide voters.

CJI: Those who are genuine will be included. Judicial officers are doing the exercise.

Guruswamy: About 7 lakh cases have been processed by judicial officers. Total is 63 lakhs. 57 odd lakhs remain

CJI: Now this game begins...52 lakhs were total...premature petition...Chief Justice has informed today 10 lakhs have been done...as far as you people are concerned, wait and watch. Advance petitions send wrong signal that you don't have faith in system. How petitioners dare to file the application...? daring to question judicial officers. I AM ISSUING A STERN WARNING

Guruswamy: We have not done so, shocking to question judicial officers.

Hearing in #WestBengalSIR cases begins

Sr Advs Menaka Guruswamy, Kalyan Banerjee and Gopal Sankaranarayanan appearing for petitioners.