West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has approached the Supreme Court challenging the Election Commission of India’s ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the State, alleging statutory violations. The petition puts fresh judicial scrutiny on the voter verification exercise, with potential implications for the integrity and legality of the electoral process ahead of upcoming polls.
Banerjee’s challenge stems from her claim that the SIR is being conducted in breach of the Representation of the People Act and the applicable electoral rules. The dispute has been brewing for weeks, with the Trinamool Congress flagging concerns that electoral officers were acting on informal or extra-statutory directions.
These objections reached the Apex Court earlier through a related intervention by TMC MP Derek O’Brien, who questioned the procedural legitimacy of the ECI’s actions during the revision process.
While the Chief Minister’s writ is now formally before the Supreme Court, the controversy unfolds against the backdrop of the Court’s recent directions to the ECI to ensure transparency and fairness in verifying voters flagged for “logical discrepancy” after the draft rolls were published. The issue gained urgency when it was pointed out to the Court that these safeguards were allegedly not being followed.
The matter is now set to be examined in light of those binding directions, with the Court expected to assess whether the ECI’s process aligns with statutory requirements and its own prior mandates.
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