In compliance with the Supreme Court’s yesterday’s directive to appoint judicial officers to assist in the SIR process in West Bengal, it has been decided to engage 150 judges from the district session courts. Election Commission sources said that apart from the session judges, seven former judges of the Calcutta High Court have also been identified for the aforesaid purpose. The entire process will proceed in line with the Supreme Court’s guidelines. Session judges will also be part of the relevant committees.

In response to the Supreme Court’s order regarding the appointment of judicial officers in the SIR process, today, the Chief Justice of the High Court, the state’s Chief Secretary, the Chief Electoral Officer, the Advocate General of the state, the Additional Solicitor General and other senior officials held a meeting.

After the meeting, Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal reiterated that the Commission’s main objective is to ensure inclusion of all the eligible voters in the voter list. He also informed that the process of verification and disposal of information will continue until midnight tonight. As per the Court’s directive, the final disposal process will be carried out through judicial officers. The Commission has expressed the view that hearings based on constituencies would be more convenient, though the final decision will rest with the Court.