The Election Commission EC released a supplementary voter list in the early hours of Wednesday. Following a Supreme Court mandate under Article 142, the tribunal cleared only 136 individuals to cast their votes in the first phase of polling scheduled for April 23.

The Core of the Dispute

The Supreme Court had previously intervened, allowing the tribunal until April 21 to settle pending voter applications. While those cleared by this deadline are eligible for the first phase, a second window remains open until April 27 for the subsequent phase of voting on April 29.
However, the scale of the approval has sparked a massive political row:

*136 names* were added to the supplementary list.

2 names were explicitly removed from the list despite the tribunal’s earlier assurance that no one would be excluded without a personal hearing.

2.7 million applicants remain in limbo or excluded, a figure that has become a central point of contention.

Political Reactions: A War of Words

The ruling and opposition parties in Bengal have taken starkly different stances on the
TMC Leader Joyprakash Majumdar (State VP) Criticized the EC for processing only 136 names in three weeks, comparing it to “a drop of water on a hot griddle.” He accused the Commission of stripping 2.7 million people of their fundamental rights.

BJP MPRahul Sinha (MP) Defended the process, stating that the 2.7 million names were excluded due to a lack of documented evidence. He emphasized that judicial officers are meticulously verifying records and only those with valid proof are being reinstated.

Background: The SIR List

The controversy stems from the SIR final list published on February 28, which initially left the status of roughly 6 million voters “under consideration.” Following judicial review, many of those whose names were not reinstated approached the tribunal. With the first phase of the election just hours away, the minimal number of approvals has raised questions regarding the efficiency and inclusivity of the electoral process in this cycle.

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