Kolkata, 19 January (H.S.) :
Hours after the Supreme Court directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to make public the list of so-called “logical discrepancies” in West Bengal’s electoral rolls, the state’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Manojkumar Agarwal, held an urgent meeting with senior ECI officials in New Delhi to deliberate on the issue.
Agarwal had travelled to the national capital earlier in the day for a pre-scheduled review meeting with the ECI on discrepancies in the state’s voter list and was expected to return to Kolkata the same evening. However, following the apex court’s directive, he was asked to remain in Delhi as the Commission moved to comply with the order to publish the list.
According to sources within the Commission, nearly 1.36 crore voters in West Bengal were initially flagged under the category of “logical discrepancies” in the electoral rolls. This number was later revised to approximately 94 lakh. Based on the revised data, notices have been issued to voters for hearings. The meeting between the CEO and ECI officials focused on reviewing the status of these discrepancies and the progress of the ongoing hearing process.
Sources said the Supreme Court’s directions were also discussed in detail during the meeting. However, there is still no official clarity on the exact timeline for the publication of the list of logical discrepancies.
The demand for making the list public has been a long-standing issue in West Bengal’s political discourse. The ruling party has repeatedly pressed the Election Commission to disclose the details, with senior leaders raising the matter in public forums as well as in formal communications with the Chief Election Commissioner.
The Supreme Court’s order has now added fresh momentum to the debate. In its directive, the apex court clearly stated that the Election Commission must display the list of logical discrepancies at all gram panchayat offices, block offices and ward offices across the state. It also instructed the Commission to open separate counters at each block office to facilitate the submission of documents and objections by voters.
The court further directed that voters must be provided with written acknowledgements and separate receipts for documents submitted during hearings, to ensure transparency and accountability in the process.
Meanwhile, Monday marked the deadline for filing claims and objections related to the draft electoral roll. The Commission had earlier extended the timeline to allow voters and political parties additional time after the publication of the draft list.
Official figures show that prior to the publication of the draft roll, 3,31,075 applications were submitted for inclusion of names in the voter list. In the month following the release of the draft list, an additional 5,85,951 applications for inclusion were received. Applications seeking deletion of names stood at nearly one lakh till Sunday, with only 114 fresh deletion requests recorded on Monday.
Commission sources clarified that voters would not be called for hearings in cases involving minor or insignificant spelling errors in names.
The draft electoral roll was published on December 16, and the process of receiving claims and objections began on December 17. Hearings for voters identified due to logical discrepancies or other issues are currently underway and will continue until February 7.
As of Monday, notices for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) hearings had been issued to over 71.9 lakh voters. Hearings have already been completed for nearly 19 lakh voters, including more than 1.5 lakh hearings conducted on Monday alone. Officials noted that these figures are subject to change as the revision process continues.
Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh
