The Election Commission of India is likely to publish an additional voter list later this week, which will determine the fate of around 20 lakh voters whose verification process has already been completed, sources said.
According to officials, the upcoming list will specify which of these voters will remain on the electoral rolls and whose names will be deleted.
The move comes amid an ongoing large-scale verification exercise involving over 60.06 lakh individuals placed under the ‘under consideration’ category.
Judicial officers appointed by the Calcutta High Court are currently scrutinising the details of these voters.
Based on document verification, the officers will decide who qualifies as a legitimate voter and who does not.
Sources indicated that verification and disposal of records for more than 21 lakh voters had been completed as of Tuesday, with the first additional list expected to reflect the status of around 20 lakh of them.
A high-level meeting was held at the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday to review the progress and discuss the publication of the additional list.
The meeting was attended by Chief Justice Sujoy Paul, Chief Secretary Dushmanta Nariala, Home Secretary Sanghamitra Ghosh, Director General of Police Siddhanath Gupta, Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal, and Special Observer Subrata Gupta.
Sources said the additional list could be released on Friday or Saturday.
Voters whose names are excluded from the ‘under consideration’ list in the additional roll will have the option to appeal before a special tribunal under the judiciary.
In line with directions from the Supreme Court, preparations are underway for the formation of such tribunals.
A decision on the formation of these bodies is expected within the next two to three days, and the composition of the tribunals may also be finalised during this period.
The verification process is being conducted in response to discrepancies flagged in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) data, following Supreme Court directives.
Not only judicial officers from West Bengal, but also judges from Jharkhand and Odisha have been deployed for the exercise.
At present, a total of 705 judicial officers are engaged in resolving cases related to the ‘under consideration’ voters.
Sources further indicated that multiple additional voter lists may be published ahead of the elections as the verification process continues.
Judicial officers are expected to take a few more days to complete scrutiny of the remaining voters.
According to Election Commission sources, all voters who are cleared and included in the final lists before the last date of nomination filing will be eligible to cast their votes.
The West Bengal Assembly elections will be held in two phases on 23 April and 29 April.
The last date for filing nominations for the first phase is 4 April, while for the second phase it is 9 April.
Eligible voters finalised by these deadlines will be allowed to participate in the respective phases of polling.