‘It is only bypolls’: Supreme Court assures hearing in West Bengal SIR on October 5
Thousands of appeals filed by voters against their exclusion from the State electoral roll were still pending
On September 28, 2026, the Supreme Court assured a hearing for the West Bengal Special Intensive Revision (SIR) on October 5, just before the bypolls in the state. Appearing before Chief Justice Surya Kant, a three-judge Bench heard the case for the first time, according to counsel. The bypolls to Nandigram and Rejinagar Assembly constituencies were scheduled for October 6.
Thousands of appeals from voters who were excluded from the electoral roll were still pending. Chief Justice remarked, "It is only bypolls," referring to the April 2026 Legislative Assembly elections where the BJP-led government, headed by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, came to power. The Chief Justice said the appeals would remain on the causelist, though he did not advance the hearing.
An affidavit from the Election Commission of India revealed that over 22 lakh voters, out of 27 lakh purged from the electoral roll during the SIR exercise, had filed appeals challenging their exclusion. The EC’s figure of 22,21,118 appealed by excluded voters is significant, given that judicial officers had already adjudicated these claims.
As of September, the 19 tribunals had decided only 1,26,194 appeals, with over 37.05 lakh pending. The EC itself suggested increasing the number of appellate tribunals to 42.
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