Following directions from the Supreme Court of India, around 200 judges from neighbouring states will arrive this week in West Bengal to assist in resolving discrepancies in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the state’s electoral rolls.
Sources in the Election Commission of India said that 100 judges each from Odisha and Jharkhand are expected to reach West Bengal on March 7.
These judicial officers will examine and adjudicate cases related to factual inconsistencies in the voter lists prepared under the SIR exercise.
After arriving in the state, the judges will undergo a two-day training programme before starting their assignments from March 9.
Once they begin work, a total of 732 judges will be engaged in handling cases linked to electoral roll discrepancies across West Bengal.
According to Commission sources, accommodation arrangements have been made for the visiting judges in areas close to major transit points including the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Sealdah Railway Station and Howrah Railway Station in Kolkata.
In addition, some judges will be stationed in key districts such as Bardhaman, Asansol, Kharagpur and Siliguri to facilitate the disposal of cases across different regions of the state.
The decision to involve judicial officers in the process came after the Supreme Court expressed dissatisfaction over the conflict between the state administration and the Election Commission on the resolution of discrepancies in the voter lists.
The apex court subsequently directed that the matter be handled through judicial intervention.
As per the court’s directive, the task of adjudicating discrepancies will be undertaken by judges and judicial officers appointed by the Calcutta High Court.
The court also allowed the appointment of retired judges for the purpose.
Acting on this, Chief Justice Sujoy Paul held several rounds of meetings with officials from the state administration and the Election Commission before appointing judicial officers to handle the work.
The Supreme Court also indicated that additional judges could be brought in from other states if required.
Following this, requests were made to Odisha and Jharkhand for judicial officers. Sources said that more judges may be sought from these states if the workload increases.
The first phase of the revised electoral roll under the SIR exercise was published on February 28.
However, the list remains incomplete, with around 60 lakh voter entries still marked as “under adjudication”.
With the West Bengal Assembly elections approaching, uncertainty remains over whether these cases will be resolved in time and whether those voters will be able to exercise their franchise if the issue remains pending.
Meanwhile, Central armed forces have already started arriving in the state and are conducting route marches in several districts as part of the election preparedness.
Adding to the political momentum, the full bench of the Election Commission is scheduled to arrive in West Bengal on March 8 to review the progress of poll preparations and the status of the ongoing voter roll revision exercise.