SIR
Mamata Banerjee scripts history, appears in Supreme Court in SIR case
New Delhi/IBNS: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reached the Supreme Court on Tuesday to be present during the hearing on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Security has been beefed up outside the court.
Banerjee, who is also an advocate, is expected to make a statement before the court, even if she does not actively participate in the arguments.
Her appearance comes a day after the Chief Minister alleged that she was “humiliated” by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar during a meeting in New Delhi.
Last month, the Supreme Court had pulled up the Election Commission of India (ECI) over its handling of the controversial SIR exercise, which is currently underway in 12 states, including poll-bound West Bengal.
The apex court directed the poll panel to carry out verification of voters flagged under the “logical discrepancies” category in a transparent and citizen-friendly manner.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Dipankar Datta and Joymalya Bagchi also ordered the Election Commission to publish the list of voters who had received notices under this category.
The court noted that nearly 1.25 crore people had been served such notices, a move that drew sharp criticism from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), which alleged that the SIR process was being used to disenfranchise genuine voters ahead of elections in the state.
Providing relief to affected voters, the bench ruled that those who received notices would be allowed to submit documents or objections through authorised agents, including Booth Level Agents (BLAs).
The court further directed that verification centres be set up at Panchayat Bhavans or block offices to ensure voters are not forced to travel long distances for hearings. It also mandated that if documents were found inadequate, officials must provide another opportunity for hearing, and receipts of submissions must be duly certified.
Addressing law-and-order concerns, the bench asked the West Bengal government to provide adequate manpower to assist the Election Commission and held the Director General of Police responsible for maintaining peace during the verification process.
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