NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday rapped the West Bengal govt for rushing to court every now and then with “vague and irrelevant” reasons to delay the completion of the Special Intensive Revision of state electoral rolls, to expedite which the SC has deployed judicial officers from Jharkhand and Odisha.“Please do not come to the court with vague reasons and try to delay the process. Every day there cannot be an irrelevant reason here and there. There must be an end to it. We went beyond our mandate (by using exclusive powers under Article 142 to direct deployment of judicial officers to carry out a task which is essentially in the EC domain). You are making unnecessary complaints,” CJI Surya Kant said. Mamata Banerjee vs Election Commission: Supreme Court Orders Judicial Oversight in Bengal SIR The remark came after Kapil Sibal levelled the serious charge before the CJI and Justice Joymalya Bagchi that “strange things have happened. EC officials are giving training to judicial officers, who were deployed by the Calcutta HC CJ, on which documents submitted with claims of voters are to be accepted.”Sibal said it marked a violation of the SC’s direction that the modalities would be decided by the chief justice of Calcutta HC. The bench, however, disliked the issues relating to SIR being raked up every now and then by the Bengal govt for one or the other reason.“When we said the HC CJ will decide the modalities, we meant he would decide which judicial officer is to be deployed where and what facilities were to be provided to him. The judicial officer alone will decide the pending claims and validity of documents submitted by the voters,” said the bench, disagreeing with Sibal’s charge about the EC disregarding the SC. Justice Bagchi said, “If the EC officials will not give training to judicial officers, who else will. Our order is as clear as daylight. We gave an alien responsibility to the judicial officers to expedite SIR. Both the state govt and the EC must provide and create a congenial atmosphere for them to work.”Finding the state at the receiving end, Sibal said “the state chief secretary is here as unfortunately her voting rights are being put to question by the EC”. The bench said, “Ask your chief secretary to work in tandem with the EC and judicial officers for expeditious completion of SIR.”Sibal turned to another aspect and said the EC must publish the supplementary voter lists after the publication of the final voter list on Feb 28, as and when a cluster of voters’ names were decided by the judicial officers for inclusion in the voter list.The bench said SIR would be carried out strictly in accordance with court’s orders, which also specify which documents to be accepted for scrutiny of claims.End of ArticleFollow Us On Social MediaVideosThree Fault Lines, One Open War: Security Expert Breaks Down Why Pakistan’s Taliban Gamble FailedPak-Afghan War: Security Expert Say Conflict Could End Badly for IslambadWho Is Really Running Pakistan’s Afghan Policy? Experts React To Islamabad’s AggressionIndia, Israel Backs Kabul: Pak Journalist’s Shocking Claims on Afghan Actions Against IslamabadAmid Rising Violence, Afghanistan Urges Pakistan For Talks To Prevent Prolonged Conflict“Deep Concern”: China Alarms As Pakistan-Afghanistan Clash Explodes After Taliban StrikeKejriwal Gets Clean Chit In Delhi Liquor Policy Case, Court Tears Into CBI Over Lack Of EvidencePakistan Army Blames India Again For ‘Open War’ Against Afghanistan, Calls Taliban Delhi’s ProxyCanada PM Mark Carney Lands In India, Aims For Fresh Push To Reset Strained Bilateral TiesPakistan in Open War With Afghanistan, But Does Islamabad Have the Military Muscle?123Photostories5 wetlands in North India to visit before the winter migratory season endsThe most powerful mantra to remove fear and anxietyFrom Thalapathy Vijay to Dhanush: South Indian celebrity divorces that shocked fansThe 50: From Yuvika Chaudhary getting upset with Mr Faisu to Sidharth Bharadwaj’s eviction; Top moments from the episode5 plants you should NEVER place near the main door as per Vastu and why3-ingredient breakfast dishes for working women and what makes them specialDitch the pastel winds: What Vijay Deverakonda’s and Rashmika Mandanna’s wedding outfits taught us3 office rules you should always follow for a peaceful life and better work-life balance6 Indian billionaires who own private residence worth crores in Lutyens’ Bungalow Zone, DelhiFrom red anarkali to yellow suit: Rashmika Mandanna’s newlywed glow steals the spotlight123Hot PicksPakistan-Afghanistan warIndia GDP growthGold rate todayAir ticket refund rulesIncome Tax CalculatorPublic holidays February 2026Bank Holidays februaryTop TrendingResident Evil RequiemDenver BroncosNFL RumorsHSR Stellaron Hunter Blade skinLos Angeles DodgersCody BellingerTony DungyShai Gilgeous AlexanderNFL CombineTony Dungy
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday rapped the West Bengal govt for rushing to court every now and then with “vague and irrelevant” reasons to delay the completion of the Special Intensive Revision of state electoral rolls, to expedite which the SC has deployed judicial officers from Jharkhand and Odisha.“Please do not come to the court with vague reasons and try to delay the process. Every day there cannot be an irrelevant reason here and there. There must be an end to it. We went beyond our mandate (by using exclusive powers under Article 142 to direct deployment of judicial officers to carry out a task which is essentially in the EC domain). You are making unnecessary complaints,” CJI Surya Kant said.
The remark came after Kapil Sibal levelled the serious charge before the CJI and Justice Joymalya Bagchi that “strange things have happened. EC officials are giving training to judicial officers, who were deployed by the Calcutta HC CJ, on which documents submitted with claims of voters are to be accepted.”Sibal said it marked a violation of the SC’s direction that the modalities would be decided by the chief justice of Calcutta HC. The bench, however, disliked the issues relating to SIR being raked up every now and then by the Bengal govt for one or the other reason.“When we said the HC CJ will decide the modalities, we meant he would decide which judicial officer is to be deployed where and what facilities were to be provided to him. The judicial officer alone will decide the pending claims and validity of documents submitted by the voters,” said the bench, disagreeing with Sibal’s charge about the EC disregarding the SC. Justice Bagchi said, “If the EC officials will not give training to judicial officers, who else will. Our order is as clear as daylight. We gave an alien responsibility to the judicial officers to expedite SIR. Both the state govt and the EC must provide and create a congenial atmosphere for them to work.”Finding the state at the receiving end, Sibal said “the state chief secretary is here as unfortunately her voting rights are being put to question by the EC”. The bench said, “Ask your chief secretary to work in tandem with the EC and judicial officers for expeditious completion of SIR.”Sibal turned to another aspect and said the EC must publish the supplementary voter lists after the publication of the final voter list on Feb 28, as and when a cluster of voters’ names were decided by the judicial officers for inclusion in the voter list.The bench said SIR would be carried out strictly in accordance with court’s orders, which also specify which documents to be accepted for scrutiny of claims.
