No Hurdles Will Be Allowed in SIR Exercise: CJI Tells States During West Bengal Hearing

The Supreme Court on Monday sent a strong and unambiguous message during its hearing on the West Bengal Special Investigation Report (SIR), making it clear that the process would move forward without interference. Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said the court would issue directions wherever improvements were needed but would not tolerate any attempt to delay or obstruct the exercise.

"All states should understand this," the Chief Justice said, underscoring the court's resolve to ensure compliance.

At the heart of the hearing was a dispute over whether West Bengal had submitted the required list of officers for deployment in the SIR process. The CJI observed that had the list been furnished by February 5, the Election Commission of India (ECI) would likely have taken a decision by now, hinting at avoidable delays.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the state, argued that the ECI had never formally asked for the names of officers. Countering this, senior advocate Shyam Diwan told the court that a list of 8,500 officers had been prepared and submitted. The CJI immediately sought clarity, asking whether the list contained complete details such as names, designations, and places of posting, and whether the officers could report to the Electoral Registration Officers by the next day.

The Election Commission, however, disputed the state's claims. Its counsel, senior advocate D S Naidu, told the court that the documents received did not contain the officers' names. The disagreement prompted a sharp warning from the Chief Justice, who said the court did not want factual contradictions and cautioned that continued confusion could result in the Chief Secretary being summoned.

The bench also questioned delays in officer deployment and raised concerns over voter mapping under the Logical Discrepancy category. When told that over 50 percent of discrepancies were due to spelling errors, the CJI asked pointedly whether nearly 70 lakh voters could have been flagged for such minor mistakes.

Tensions briefly rose in the courtroom when multiple lawyers spoke at once. "This is Court Number One, not a marketplace," the Chief Justice remarked, restoring order.

The court was informed that the SIR process is scheduled to conclude by February 14. The Supreme Court is hearing petitions filed by the West Bengal government and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, and has made it clear that strict adherence to its earlier orders will be non-negotiable.