West Bengal SIR: Supreme Court Directs To Form Appellate Tribunals Of Ex-HC Judges For Appeals Against Exclusions

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed that Appellate Tribunals comprising former High Court Chief Justices and former High Court Judges be constituted to hear appeals against exclusions in the West Bengal Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, after concerns were raised about the absence of an independent appellate mechanism.This follows the earlier directions of the Court, as per which Judicial Officers, from Bengal and neighbouring states, were deployed to adjudicate SIR claims, in view of the blame-game between the State and the Election Commission of India.During the hearing, senior counsel appearing for the petitioners flagged two issues before the Court. The first related to the mechanism of appeal available to persons whose claims are rejected by the Judicial Officers (JOs) during the revision process. The second concerned the publication of supplementary lists of persons whose objections have already been disposed of, particularly in view of the large number of objections, reportedly exceeding ten lakh.Addressing the first issue, the Court recalled its order dated February 24, in which it had clarified that orders passed by the Judicial Officers would not be subjected to appeal before any executive or administrative forum.In view of this, the Court observed that the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court may request some former Chief Justices and two or three former High Court Judges, preferably from the Calcutta High Court or neighbouring States, to serve as members of the appellate tribunals. Once their names are recommended, the Election Commission of India (ECI) may notify them as Appellate Tribunals to hear appeals arising from the SIR process. The Court left it to the Calcutta High Court Chief Justice to decide how many members should be on the Appellate Tribunal Benches.The Court further requested the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to fix the honorarium payable to the former Chief Justices or judges who agree to serve on the tribunals. The honorarium may be determined in consultation with the Election Commission of India, which will bear the entire expense.With respect to the second issue concerning the publication of supplementary lists of persons whose objections have already been disposed of, the Court granted liberty to both sides to approach the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court. The Court observed that once the Chief Justice makes an appropriate recommendation regarding publication of such supplementary lists, the Election Commission of India should act upon it.Senior Advocates Menaka Guruswamy, Kalyan Bandhopadhyay and Gopal Sankaranarayanan appeared for the petitioners.Status Of Objections And Deployment Of Judicial OfficersThe Court noted a communication received from the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, which stated that 10.16 lakh objections had been disposed of as of the evening of March 9.According to the communication, 500 Judicial Officers from West Bengal and around 200 Judicial Officers from Odisha and Jharkhand have been deployed for the exercise and are working day and night.It further informed the Court that around 700 login IDs had been created by March 8, 2026 to facilitate smooth mobilisation and redeployment of Judicial Officers in certain sensitive districts.However, the Judicial Officers were facing certain urgent logistical and technical difficulties, which the Court observed appeared to have arisen at the level of the Election Commission of India. The issue was brought to the notice of ECI's counsel Senior Advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, who assured the Court that the problems would be rectified without delay.The Court strongly recommended that the ECI provide full logistical support to the Calcutta High Court and the Judicial Officers to enable them to complete their responsibilities. It also directed the State government to provide all necessary facilities for the conduct of the exercise.Directions Issued By The CourtThe Court issued the following directions to ensure the smooth continuation of the process:The Election Commission of India shall ensure that no mandatory requirement is introduced which might disrupt the process, unless approved by the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court.Technical issues relating to the portal which are causing disruptions shall be effectively addressed so that no such disruption occurs in the process.New login IDs shall be created promptly as and when required by the Judicial Officers, without any delay.Refuses to entertain plea against exclusionDuring the hearing, the Court expressed serious unhappiness with an application filed seeking to direct the ECI to withdraw the additional cases given to judicial officers for verification.The bench expressed unhappiness with an application questioning the competence of judicial officers, who have been deployed by the Supreme Court to adjudicate the SIR claims."Now the game begins. We knew you people will run away when judicial officers are appointed. HC...

West Bengal SIR: Supreme Court Directs To Form Appellate Tribunals Of Ex-HC Judges For Appeals Against Exclusions

Debby Jain

During the hearing, CJI remarked, "We are doubting the bona fides of both sides."

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