Judicial Officers from Jharkhand and Odisha Set to Boost Voter Document Review in West Bengal

Judicial Officers Arrive for Voter Document Review

Kolkata: A contingent of 200 judicial officers from the neighboring states of Jharkhand and Odisha is set to arrive in West Bengal by Saturday. They will participate in the ongoing judicial review of voter documents flagged under the 'logical discrepancy' category by the Election Commission of India (ECI) starting March 9.

These officers will undergo a two-day training session on the judicial adjudication process this Saturday and Sunday. Following this, they will integrate with the existing team of judicial officers already engaged in the adjudication efforts, as reported by sources from the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal.

With the addition of these 200 officers, the total number of judicial personnel involved in the adjudication process will rise to 732. Most of the new officers will be stationed in Kolkata, while a few will be assigned to significant district towns such as Bardhaman in East Midnapore, Asansol in West Burdwan, Kharagpur in West Midnapore, and Siliguri in Darjeeling.

Accommodations for these officers have been arranged near Kolkata's airport and major railway stations, both in the city and the district towns.

Next week, particularly on Monday and Tuesday, two significant developments concerning the judicial adjudication aspect of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and election readiness for the upcoming Assembly elections are anticipated.

The full bench of the ECI, headed by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, will arrive in Kolkata on the evening of March 8, with a busy agenda to assess the ongoing judicial exercise and the preparations for the upcoming Assembly elections.

A pivotal hearing regarding the SIR and associated judicial adjudication is scheduled at the Supreme Court on March 10.

The final voters' list for West Bengal, excluding cases referred for judicial adjudication, was published on February 28. A supplementary list will be released in due course, following a prior directive from the Supreme Court.

Over 6 million cases have been referred for judicial adjudication, and as of Thursday night, the process has been completed for approximately 500,000 cases, according to statistics from the CEO's office.