A fresh controversy has erupted in West Bengal after the publication of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) final voter list (first phase) revealed that over 60 lakh voter names remain marked as “Under Adjudication.”

The list reportedly includes names ranging from local councillors and MLAs to even World Cup-winning sportspersons, raising questions about the scale of the verification exercise and the time required to resolve pending cases ahead of the upcoming elections.

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The issue intensified after the Election Commission stated that these cases remained unresolved because the concerned Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) had not completed the adjudication process. According to the Commission, the unresolved cases have now been forwarded to judicial officers appointed by the Calcutta High Court, in accordance with directions from the Supreme Court, for further scrutiny.

However, the explanation has been strongly contested by the West Bengal Civil Service (WBCS) Officers’ Association, which issued a statement rejecting the Commission’s claim.

WBCS officers dispute Election Commission’s claim

Responding to a communication posted on social media by the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, the WBCS officers’ body said it was deeply concerned that responsibility for the large number of pending cases had been attributed to EROs and AEROs.

The association stated that the claim was “completely untrue and emphatically denied.” According to the organisation, EROs and AEROs had worked extensively throughout the entire SIR process, handling responsibilities such as conducting hearings, verifying documents and uploading records.

The officers’ body alleged that Commission-appointed observers and micro-observers cancelled several cases without providing observations or opinions, which eventually resulted in a large number of entries being placed in the “Under Adjudication” category.

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The association further said that blaming EROs and AEROs for the pending cases was “humiliating and demoralising” for officers who had been carrying out election-related duties.

The controversy has sparked wider debate across the state about whether the document verification process for such a large number of voters can be completed before the official announcement of the Assembly election schedule.