Mamata Banerjee at Supreme Court as electoral roll revision in West Bengal comes under scrutiny
The Statesman | 4 February 2026
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee arrived at the Supreme Court on Wednesday, as the apex court is scheduled to take up matters linked to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The hearing comes amid mounting political tension over the revision exercise in poll-bound West Bengal, which the Trinamool Congress has strongly opposed.
Heavy security was deployed in and around the Supreme Court complex ahead of the proceedings.
Banerjee arrived at the court from the residence of Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee in New Delhi.
Why the SIR process is under Supreme Court scrutiny
The court is hearing a batch of petitions challenging the SIR process, primarily on grounds of procedural irregularities.
Earlier, while dealing with petitions related to Tamil Nadu, the Supreme Court issued detailed directions to the Election Commission of India on how discrepancies in voter lists must be handled.
The bench, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, directed the Election Commission to publish the names of voters placed under the “Logical Discrepancy” category during the SIR exercise.
The court said these names must be displayed at gram panchayat bhawans, taluka offices in every subdivision, and ward offices in urban areas.
Those whose names appear on the list have been given 10 days from the date of display to submit documents. This can be done either in person or through authorised representatives.
The list must also clearly mention brief reasons for the discrepancy in each case.
In addition, the Supreme Court directed all district collectors to follow Election Commission instructions and ensure adequate staff deployment so that the SIR process is conducted smoothly.
Political confrontation spills beyond the courtroom
The legal battle has been accompanied by a sharp political confrontation between the Trinamool Congress and the Election Commission.
Earlier this week, Mamata Banerjee, along with TMC National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, party MP Kalyan Banerjee, and others, met Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in New Delhi.
According to sources, despite what was described as a polite posture by the Chief Election Commissioner and the two Election Commissioners, the Trinamool Congress leader “raised false allegations, misbehaved, thumped the table and left”.
“The CEC responded to her queries and explained that the rule of law shall prevail and anybody taking the law into their own hands shall be dealt with strictly as per the provisions of law and powers vested in the Commission,” a source said.
With the Supreme Court now seized of the matter, the outcome of the hearing is expected to have wider implications for how voter roll revisions are carried out ahead of elections.