It is worth noting that ECI has sent notices to several public figures including former navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash (retd), Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, and Indian cricketer Mohammed Shami under the SIR.CM Mamata has been opposing the SIR for a long time, and wanted the upcoming Assembly elections in the state due in April-May to be conducted as per the voting list of 2025. She had moved an interlocutory application in the court seeking permission for to present her argument in person.

The SC Bench comprised of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M Pancholi has been hearing a batch of petitions against SIR. In the last hearing on January 12, the bench had issued directions to ECI to make the SIR more transparent, accessible, and voter-friendly in West Bengal.

After hearing Mamata Banerjee, the Bench ordered issuance of notice in two petitions and directed that a connected matter, in which the ECI has already filed an affidavit, also be listed on February 9. All issues will be heard on that day, the court said.

Mamata Banerjee questioned the intention of ECI behind conducting SIR in West Bengal and asked why the exercise was not being carried out in Assam? “When people are out they did it. BLOs died by suicide and they blamed the election officials. It is because of the harassment, West Bengal is targeted, why not Assam?! Why not Assam?!!” she said.

She alleged that micro observers being appointed from BJP-ruled states in an attempt to “bulldoze” the people of Bengal. They were appointed from BJP ruled states to delete the names during SIR. “So many called dead... This Election Commission, sorry the 'WhatsApp Commission' is doing all of this," she said.

CM Mamata said that ERO has no power. They have superseded all power from ERO...8300 micro observers...from BJP ruled state...micro observers can delete all names sitting in office...they have not allowed to file Form 6...lakhs deleted...so many people alive declared dead...they are anti-women.

She gave specific examples of discrepancies in the SIR process, such as names of women were deleted from the list because they changed their last names after marriage. It was considered mismatch. Some daughters who shifted to in-laws house … their names were also deleted, she submitted.

Over the deleted name, she said that 58 lakhs deleted and they did not have option to appeal. Only Bengal is being targeted to bulldoze WB people. As for LD case they are not to be deleted. They should be cleared by DO and ERO, not by micro observers.

She said that what opponent lawyer said about making available the officer of the state is not correct. It depends on district magistrate and SDM depends of the district, whatever strength we have, we have provided. They are telling what I don’t believe. On this CJI asked her to give the least of group B officers on February 9, expressing his intention to find practical solution to the problem.

She expressed her gratitude to the Bench for giving her chance to represent the case of people of her state. She said, “When justice is crying behind the door... then we thought we are not getting justice anywhere. We wrote 6 letters to the election commission. I am a bonded labour... I prefer that, I am not fighting for my party.”

CM Mamata alleged that ECI’s SIR was being used to "target West Bengal" and remove genuine voters rather than correct errors."This SIR is for deletion, not inclusion," she said, alleging that lakhs of voters had been wrongly flagged under “logical discrepancies”.

Appearing for Mamata Banerjee, advocate Shyam Divan said that the ECI must upload the reasons for citing each of the names in the logical discrepancy (LD) list.“After directions of this court, name, age, gender is there and in reasons is only D and M. No reasons are given,” Divan said. He also referred to a huge number of unmapped voters in the SIR process and said that there was little time left for remedial measures. “Unmapped voters are 32 lakhs. 1.36 crores in logical discrepancy list. Hearings pending 63 lakhs,” he said.

Mamata Banerjee, in her petition had flagged LD including minor spelling variations or name mismatches. It should be recalled that during the last SIR hearing on January 12, the apex Court had also recorded the seven categories of “logical discrepancies” identified under the SIR, including voters missing from the 2002 rolls, age gaps below prescribed thresholds with parents or grandparents, gender mismatches, and cases involving unusually large family mappings.

In her petition, CM Mamata, had sought the quashing of all SIR-related orders issued by the ECI on June 24, 2025, and October 27, 2025, along with all connected directives. She stated in her petition filed on January 28 that the ongoing process will result in “large-scale disenfranchisement” caused by “the opaque, hasty, unconstitutional and illegal actions of the ECI.” (IPA Service)