Mr Bengal: Bangladesh vs EU: SC takes ‘extraordinary’ step, judicial officers to be part of SIR mandate | India News
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday passed a “special order” directing the Calcutta High Court to appoint current and former judicial officers of West Bengal as Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) to adjudicate claims and objections in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the state’s electoral rolls, Live Law reported.The court said the judicial officers will be supported by micro observers and state government officials. It directed the collector and police to provide logistical support and security to the officials.The Supreme Court observed that there was a “trust deficit” between the Mamata Banerjee-led state government and the government. election committee.
The SC said the “extraordinary order” was issued after “extraordinary circumstances” emerged in the state.Recognizing special circumstances, by chief justice of india (CJI) asked the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to appoint sitting and retired judicial officers at the level of district judge or additional district judge to resolve pending claims and objections regarding inclusion and exclusion from the electoral list, especially cases involving “logical discrepancies”.The intervention came to resolve the impasse between the Election Commission and the Bengal government over the representation and rank of senior officers on the state’s electoral rolls, noting that it was “virtually impossible” to decide on the appropriate rank of officers to be deployed by either party.A Supreme Court bench comprising CJI Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul M Pancholi is hearing the SIR-related cases in Bengal.
