The Supreme Court on Wednesday heard an emotionally charged challenge relating to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee personally addressing the Bench and alleging large-scale wrongful deletions of voters ahead of elections.
CM said Bengal was being “targeted” by the Election Commission and SIR was meant to “bulldoze” the people of Bengal.
“Only for Bengal they are appointed micro-observers. Only for Bengal they appointed these micro observers to bulldoze the people of Bengal. My submission is the logical discrepancy case not to be deleted and as it is it should be cleared not by the micro-observers,” CM submitted before a bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul Pancholi
A Bench led by the Chief Justice took up multiple petitions, including one filed by the State of West Bengal, raising concerns over alleged discrepancies, time constraints, and the manner in which the SIR exercise is being conducted.
What Supreme Court Said On Mamata Banerjee’s Allegations Over West Bengal SIR
The Court noted that the entire procedure is governed by a strict timeline, which had already been extended by ten days, and that only four days now remain.
“We cannot grant the luxury of one more week,” the Chief Justice observed, while emphasising that “every problem has a solution so that no innocent citizen is left out.”
Senior Advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioners, highlighted what he termed as serious procedural difficulties. He placed before the Court data indicating that 32 lakh voters were marked as unmapped, 1.36 crore entries, nearly 20% of the electorate, were flagged under the logical discrepancy list, and around 63 lakh hearings were still pending.
He also questioned the appointment of 8,300 micro observers, arguing that they lack statutory backing and are rejecting valid documents such as Aadhaar, domicile and caste certificates.
West Bengal SIR: SC On Linguistic Issues
Responding to concerns about communication, the Chief Justice noted that the list was not the sole mode and that individual notices were also being issued.
Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for the Election Commission of India (ECI), submitted that all notices contain reasons and that voters were permitted to act through authorised agents. He defended the appointment of micro observers, stating that the State government failed to provide adequate Group B/Class II officers despite repeated requests, leaving the Commission with no alternative.
Addressing the Hon’ble Court, Smt. @mamataofficial placed real-life cases on record, backed by reports from leading newspapers. Clarifying, she stated: “These are not my photographs. These are from reputed newspapers.”
She explained that the SIR is being used almost entirely as… pic.twitter.com/2gaO51NyHT
— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) February 4, 2026
The hearing also saw exchanges on name discrepancies arising from linguistic and transliteration issues. The Bench observed that such problems occur pan-India due to local dialects. Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal reminded the Court that assurances had earlier been given that such minor discrepancies would not be pressed.
What Mamata Banerjee Told SC On West Bengal SIR
Addressing the Court directly, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that the SIR process was being used only for the deletion of names, disproportionately affecting women, migrants, and the poor. She questioned the timing of the exercise after 24 years, its conduct during harvesting season, and claimed that people were being declared dead despite being alive.
She further alleged that Bengal was being singled out, while asking why similar exercises were not undertaken in other States such as Assam. Urging the Court’s intervention, she said, “Please protect the people’s rights. We are grateful.”
Seeking a practical resolution, the Chief Justice directed the State to provide, by Monday, a list of Group B officers who can be spared to assist in the exercise. The Bench ordered the issuance of notice in both petitions and directed that a connected matter, in which the ECI has already filed an affidavit, also be listed on Monday.
The Court said all issues would be heard together on the next date.
The hearing concluded with the Court assuring that the matter would receive urgent and comprehensive consideration.
(With updates from ANI)
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
