TMC MP Derek O Brien Moves Supreme Court Against Election Commission of India for Extension of West Bengal SIR Deadline; Alleges Procedural Irregularities by ECI

Mumbai, January 6: The All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) has moved the Supreme Court against the Election Commission of India (ECI), escalating its confrontation with the poll body over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal. In a petition filed Tuesday by TMC Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien, the party seeks urgent intervention to extend the deadline for the revision exercise, citing “arbitrary” procedures and a lack of transparency that it alleges could disenfranchise millions of voters ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

The 101-page petition, accessed by news agencies, launches a sharp attack on the ECI's administrative methods, accusing the body of bypassing statutory protocols in favor of informal commands. The plea characterizes the current operation as a "WhatsApp Commission," alleging that critical instructions—including warnings and operational guidelines—are being disseminated to field officials exclusively through instant messaging platforms rather than official circulars. West Bengal SIR: Election Commission Directs 2-Level Checking of Supporting Documents of Voters During Hearing Sessions.

“ECI cannot act arbitrarily, capriciously or dehors law, nor can it substitute legally prescribed set procedures with ad-hoc or informal mechanisms,” the petition states. The party claims to have documented over 50 instances where the Chief Electoral Officer’s office issued binding instructions to officials via WhatsApp, a practice the TMC argues avoids accountability and creates confusion on the ground.

Algorithm Opacity and ‘Logical Discrepancies’

A central pillar of the TMC’s legal challenge is the ECI’s use of undisclosed technology to flag voters. The petition highlights that approximately 1.36 crore electors—nearly 18% of the state's electorate—have been identified for verification based on “logical discrepancies.” The party contends that the ECI has failed to define what constitutes a logical discrepancy or disclose the algorithms and software used to map these voters. ‘Gross Errors in Mapping of Voters’: West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee Slams Election Commission Over SIR Exercise.

“At the moment, there exists absolutely no clarity about what the software the ECI has used is... The ECI has, as it has throughout this SIR process, behaved in a completely opaque manner,” the plea reads. The TMC argues that this lack of transparency prevents public scrutiny and raises fears of targeted deletions, noting that the draft roll published in December 2025 already saw the deletion of over 58 lakh names.

Alleged Procedural Violations

Beyond technological concerns, the petition details specific procedural grievances regarding the verification process. The TMC alleges that Booth Level Agents (BLAs)—political party representatives mandated to oversee the process—are being barred from entering hearing centers in West Bengal.

Furthermore, the plea claims that the deletion of voters is happening via "centralized backend" mechanisms on the ECI's ERO-net portal, bypassing the local Electoral Registration Officers (EROs). According to the petition, these backend deletions occur without the knowledge or consent of the EROs, who are statutorily empowered to make final decisions on voter inclusion or exclusion based on ground-level verification.

Political Standoff Intensifies

The legal move comes just days after a high-voltage confrontation between the TMC and the poll body. On December 31, a TMC delegation led by National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee met with the full bench of the Election Commission in New Delhi. The meeting reportedly ended in acrimony, with Banerjee alleging that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar "lost his temper" and acted aggressively when questioned about the discrepancies.

With the West Bengal Assembly elections slated for early 2026, the integrity of the electoral roll has become the focal point of the political battle between the ruling TMC and the opposition BJP. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has already signaled her intent to fight the issue legally, describing the SIR process as a tool to manipulate the voter base.

The Supreme Court is expected to hear the matter soon, with the current deadline for filing claims and objections to the draft roll set to expire on January 15, 2026.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 06, 2026 03:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).