The Election Commission of India has told the Supreme Court that 37,18,452 appeals linked to West Bengal’s electoral-roll revision are still pending. The appeals arose from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), covering challenges to changes involving the inclusion or deletion of names from voter lists.According to the EC affidavit, 38,20,683 appeals had been filed, but only 1,02,231 had been disposed of by the tribunals so far. The disclosure came while the Supreme Court was examining a plea seeking detailed constituency-wise information about claims and objections. The figures have placed the functioning of the electoral-roll appellate mechanism under renewed judicial scrutiny.Why Are Bengal SIR Appeals Pending?The large backlog relates to appeals filed after the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal. The Supreme Court had directed the creation of appellate tribunals to examine challenges arising from the process. The latest affidavit shows that only a small portion of the appeals have been decided so far.A total of 38,20,683 appeals have been filed.Tribunals have disposed of 1,02,231 appeals.As many as 37,18,452 appeals remain pending.The appeals concern both inclusion and deletion-related orders.The EC affidavit does not provide a separate numerical break-up of the two categories.Bengal SIR Process And DisputesThe Special Intensive Revision generated a large number of claims and objections concerning voter eligibility and electoral-roll entries. The Supreme Court has been monitoring aspects of the exercise through several proceedings, including a plea seeking Assembly constituency-wise data relating to voters affected by the revision.The appellate process was created to provide a legal route for challenging decisions related to the revised rolls. Reports said around 700 judicial officers from West Bengal and neighbouring Odisha and Jharkhand were deployed earlier to handle the large volume of claims and objections. Subsequently, 19 appellate tribunals were established under directions connected with the Supreme Court proceedings.Also Read: Rahul Gandhi TMC Election Commission Row: Why He Sees An EC-BJP PatternSupreme Court Seeks Faster DisposalThe latest figures were submitted after the Supreme Court sought information about the number of pending and disposed appeals and the steps being taken to improve the disposal process. The court had earlier directed tribunals to give priority to urgent cases involving deletion from electoral rolls.The EC’s affidavit provides the overall number of appeals but does not distinguish how many were filed by people challenging deletion and how many challenged the inclusion of names. This distinction has become relevant because the electoral-roll dispute involves different types of claims and objections arising from the SIR process.Key Highlights37,18,452 West Bengal SIR appeals remain pending.38,20,683 appeals were filed in total.Only 1,02,231 appeals have been disposed of.The appeals relate to changes in electoral-roll entries.The Supreme Court is monitoring the appeal mechanism.The EC has been asked to explain steps for streamlining disposal.ConclusionThe Election Commission’s latest affidavit has highlighted the scale of the pending electoral-roll appeals in West Bengal following the SIR exercise. More than 37 lakh cases remain undecided, compared with about 1.02 lakh that have been disposed of so far. The Supreme Court is examining the mechanism and has sought information on how the backlog can be addressed. The next steps will depend on the court proceedings and the functioning of the appellate tribunals.Disclaimer: This article is provided for news and knowledge purposes only.
