'Our pilot met with an accident...': Judge pleads for help amid mob attack after 9-hour hostage ordeal during SIR protest

The officer, trapped amid darkness and roadblocks, raised an alarm in a distress call, saying, “Please communicate it to registrar, sir… our pilot is no more with us. He met with an accident due to the hurdles of bamboos and brick barricades. We are travelling alone…”

The incident unfolded as protesters, allegedly angered over the deletion of names from voter rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), blocked roads with bamboo and debris, effectively turning the stretch into a hostile zone.

The mob later targeted the vehicle as it struggled to move through the barricaded route.

In a dramatic escalation, at least seven judicial officers—including three women—were held hostage for over nine hours by a massive crowd claiming wrongful exclusion from the electoral list.

Relief came only around 1 am, when a large contingent of police and paramilitary forces launched a rescue operation and escorted the officers to safety.

Questions, however, are being raised over the delay in police response, with reports suggesting the officers were left without assistance for hours.

The political blame game has since intensified, with the ruling Trinamool Congress accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI)—which oversees law and order during the Model Code of Conduct—of mishandling the situation.

The unrest comes against the backdrop of the contentious SIR exercise, where judicial officers from the Calcutta High Court and neighbouring states are racing against time to process nearly 60 lakh cases linked to voter roll revisions.

The Supreme Court of India on Wednesday noted that over 47 lakh cases have already been cleared, with the process expected to conclude by April 7. The officers are also tasked with enabling appellate tribunals to hear grievances ahead of polling.

The intervention follows a prolonged standoff between the ECI and the state government, which had earlier stalled the revision exercise.

With the West Bengal Assembly elections scheduled in two phases on April 23 and 29, the incident has raised serious concerns over ground-level security and the smooth conduct of the electoral process.