72 hours before Supreme Court deadline, no addition in West Bengal rolls | India News

KOLKATA: With just 72 hours to go before the Supreme Court’s deadline from Saturday to add voters cleared by the SIR tribunal, the Election Commission is yet to name a person whose voting rights have been restored and who can contest the first phase of the Bengal Assembly polls on April 23. More than 27 lakh people were excluded from the electoral roll after the judicial verdict, which was the last phase of the SIR of the electoral roll that began in November 2025. Their fate as selectors now depends on the verdict of 19 Appellate Tribunals ordered by the SC.The SC ruled that voters who were deleted from constituencies going to the first phase can exercise their franchise in the next election if their appeals are cleared by April 21. Second phase deadline, April 29 scheduled, April 27. An EC source said the tribunals began work on April 13 and disposed of nearly 200 cases by Thursday. But Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal said he had no information on how many cases had been settled so far or how many had been approved. “The functioning of the tribunal is completely independent from the EC and the CEO’s office. Until the dashboard is ready, I cannot say how many cases have been settled by the tribunals. The EC is trying its best to launch the dashboard as soon as possible,” he said. All 19 tribunals, each headed by a retired judge, are functioning from an institute in Jokar, Kolkata. Retired judges arrive at 10 am and work from 5-6 pm. “Cases are being disposed of regularly. Although some logistical and infrastructural issues remain, work is underway,” said a retired Calcutta High Court judge who heads the tribunal. Asked how to access the tribunal’s order, he said: “Keep an eye on the EC’s website.” On how the appellants will know if their names have been cleared, Agarwal said: “Voters will be informed about the decision through their BLOs. There are other ways too.