Several states, part of phase three of Special Intensive Revision of voter list, have pushed forward dates from 11 to 28 days to publish their respective final electoral rolls citing various reasons.
Five months after constituting 19 appellate tribunals to hear appeals arising from the special intensive revision (SIR) in West Bengal, the Supreme Court on Tuesday (August 25, 2026) found that public information regarding these proceedings remains sparse or speculative, even as upcoming municipal elections draw near in the State.
The issue of voters deleted during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has triggered major political controversy in both West Bengal and Bihar. Recent statements from leaders in the two states suggest that people whose names are removed from voter lists may also face restrictions in receiving government welfare benefits.
The elections are over, and now the state awaits the formation of a new cabinet. While many are calling the Election Commission or Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar the “man of the match,” much of the responsibility of implementing decisions amid immense pressure was handled behind the scenes by West Bengal’s Additional Chief Electoral Officer, Arindam Niyogi. He spoke to Newscope Bangla Editor Ashok Sengupta.
Former Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Justice T.S. Sivagnanam, has resigned from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) Appellate Tribunal in West Bengal, citing “personal reasons.” The tribunal had been constituted to hear appeals from voters whose names were removed from the electoral rolls during the SIR exercise ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
The Supreme Court on Monday said that it cannot allow people whose appeals against exclusion from the voter list are pending to vote in the upcoming West Bengal elections.
In an unprecedented escalation of tensions between the Election Commission of India (EC) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC), a high-level meeting ended in chaos and acrimony on Monday. Sources within the poll body suggest that the panel effectively told a protesting delegation of TMC MPs to “get lost” after the session devolved into a heated shouting match over the neutrality of central agencies during the election cycle.
Ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has undertaken a major revision of the electoral rolls, removing more than 91 lakh names across the state. The move is part of an effort to ensure a clean and accurate voter database before polling begins.
