Judicial work across West Bengal’s district and metropolitan courts has been severely affected after hundreds of judicial officers were deployed to process nearly 50 lakh claims and objections under the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls ahead of the February 28 deadline.
Except for urgent matters and bail hearings, trials and regular proceedings — including in special courts such as those dealing with Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) cases — have also been affected as judges undertake SIR-related verification work.
West Bengal SIR hearing: Supreme Court asks Calcutta HC to deploy more judicial officers
Urgent matters only
Committees have been formed at the Calcutta High Court and district levels to reassign urgent cases to alternative courts, but litigants and judicial officers remain uncertain about when normal functioning will resume. Now that it has fallen to the judiciary to examine claims and objections, judicial officers have reached out to administrative complexes for the verification work.
