The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Election Commission to publish the names of voters in West Bengal who have received notices under the “logical discrepancy” category during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, noting the stress faced by people due to the exercise.
The poll body has issued notices to three categories of voters: mapped, unmapped, and those with logical discrepancies.
While mapped voters have records linked to voter data requiring further verification, unmapped voters are those whose records could not be linked to electoral data. The logical discrepancy category includes cases involving inconsistencies such as mismatches in parents’ names, variations in surname spellings, and implausible age gaps between parents and children.
The court asked the Election Commission to display the names of around 1.25 crore people who have received such notices at gram panchayats, block offices, and ward offices.
It also directed that affected voters be given more time to submit documents. The bench said adequate manpower must be deployed during hearings, receipts must be issued for documents submitted, and reasons should be communicated for final decisions on objections.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien, argued that notices were being issued over minor issues like surname spellings and age gaps involving grandparents, alleging the process aimed to exclude voters. He also said the number of hearing venues was inadequate.
During the hearing, Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the Election Commission, cited cases of a 15-year age gap between parents and children. Justice Joymalya Bagchi responded that such gaps could not automatically be treated as discrepancies, noting that child marriages remain a reality in the country.
The court noted that over one crore people had been notified, including economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, and said directions would be issued where necessary.
The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress has opposed the SIR exercise, alleging it is intended to delete genuine voters ahead of state elections. Following the ruling, senior party leaders claimed the court’s intervention had protected voting rights in Bengal.