Supreme Court reluctant to shut schools or shift classes online amid Delhi's worsening air quality
The court also questioned whether there was credible medical research to support that younger children were more vulnerable to polluted air than older students.
Abhishek Banerjee, an MP for Kolkata Diamond Harbour and a leader of the Mamata All India Trinamool Congress, contended in a statement on November 6, 2026, that his party had lost the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections not to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), but to the Supreme Court of India. The Trinamool Congress leader argued that the Supreme Court's refusal to allow names to be added to the voter list three days before polling and its failure to enforce randomization of counting staff were key factors in the party's electoral defeat.
Banerjee declared his intention to take the matter to the Supreme Court himself if necessary. Across Bihar and West Bengal, millions of voters were deleted from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, which prevented them from voting in the 2025 and 2026 Assembly elections. The SIR exercise resulted in over 47 lakh names being removed in Bihar and nearly 91 lakh in West Bengal.
Banerjee's comments came amid nationwide protests over "vote-theft" allegations and calls for the cancellation of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. In West Bengal, 91 lakh electors were removed from the voter list during the SIR, which preceded the assembly polls. The Mamata AITC leader challenged the SIR before the Supreme Court and appeared before it in person.
The BJP emerged victorious in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly elections, securing 207 of the 294 seats. Banerjee also alleged that the police were threatening the accused in police custody with an encounter, and his personal assistant, Sumit Roy, was in police custody. The Trinamool leader was named as an accused in more than 20 FIRs since the BJP government took power in May 2026.
Banerjee's remarks followed allegations of planted evidence at the party's vacated office in Diamond Harbour, where ₹1 crore in cash was recovered. The party office, located within Banerjee's constituency of Diamond Harbour, saw allegations of threats to his personal assistant to testify about the recovered cash. Of the 90 lakh voters excluded by the SIR in West Bengal, 63% were Hindus and 34% were Muslims, a significant number given that Muslims constitute only 27% of the state's population.
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