West Bengal polls 2026: Lakhs set to lose vote as tribunals remain non-functional

KOLKATA: Lakhs in Bengal face loss of voting rights as tribunal system remained non-functional till Saturday. Monday is the last day for adjudication for voters of the 152 seats that are going to poll in the first phase.

For the first phase of the elections scheduled on April 23, the deadline to submit nominations ends at 3 pm on April 6. Under EC rules, the electoral list can be published until the last date for filing nominations. Therefore, the electoral roll for 152 assembly constituencies, which go to polls on April 23, will freeze by 3 pm on Monday.




According to a senior EC official, around 57 lakhs of a little over 60 lakh cases marked as "under adjudication" had been disposed of till Saturday.

"Over 700 judicial officers have been appointed to dispose of 60,06,475 doubtful and pending cases marked ‘under adjudication' in the electoral roll. They began work on Feb 24, and by April 4, about 57 lakh cases were disposed of. Of the cases processed so far, around 55% have been approved, and those names have been added to the electoral roll. The 45% of cases that were rejected have been excluded from the list, and they can appeal either online or offline against orders passed by the judicial officers to the appellate tribunals within 15 days," a senior EC official said.

Considering the rejection rate of 45%, 25.6 lakh persons have already lost their voting rights in the judicial adjudication process so far, and they are eligible to appeal to the appellate tribunals. For them, the tribunals remain the sole avenue.

However, with doubts looming over whether the tribunals can become functional by Monday, questions are being raised about the fate of the persons who have been rejected by the judicial officers.

Despite the tribunals' locations having been identified at Shyama Prasad Mookerjee National Institute of Water and Sanitation at Joka, the necessary infrastructure for retired judges — who are expected to preside over the proceedings — has not yet been put in place. This has raised concerns over whether the adjudication process can begin within the stipulated time frame.

Sources indicate that the retired judges intend to conduct proceedings strictly in accordance with established legal procedures. But the absence of adequate infrastructure has cast uncertainty over the implementation of the process.

Meanwhile, issuing a press release, the CEO's office on Saturday said, "Around 8,000 appeals under Section 24 of the Representation of People Act, 1950, have been submitted to this office in the past few days. These cases have been sent to the district magistrates concerned for necessary action as per the provisions of the Representation of People Act, 1950, subsequently."