Calcutta HC upholds EC's process; dismisses PIL on citizenship verification ahead of 2026 Bengal Assembly polls

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], April 14 (ANI): The Calcutta High Court expressed full satisfaction with the processes adopted by the Election Commission and dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought implementation of a new citizenship verification process ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
In its ruling, the court stated that such legislative measures fall outside its jurisdiction and properly belong under the purview of the Election Commission.
The court observed that the existing verification mechanisms are adequate and added that citizens retain the right to raise objections regarding candidate nominations through established legal channels.
On March 14, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) delegation led by Union Minister and West Bengal BJP President Sukanta Majumdar met with the Election Commission in Delhi to file a complaint on the alleged fake voter issue.
The BJP in Charge of West Bengal, Amit Malviya, who was part of the delegation, said the leaders emphasized the need for an audit and voter roll revision.
Speaking to mediapersons, he said that the delegation pointed out to the Election Commission that there are about 8,415 voters with similar EPIC numbers.
"Today, a delegation of BJP West Bengal met the Election Commission. We emphasized the need for an audit and voter roll revision. We have apprised the Election Commission that there are more than 13 lakh duplicate voters in Bengal," Malviya said.
This comes amid the opposition parties questioning the electoral process and voter list manipulation.
On March 6, a delegation of the Trinamool Congress met Election Commission officials in Kolkata regarding their complaints about the same Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) number.
Earlier, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee formed a committee to check the alleged irregularities in the voters' list in every district of West Bengal. She alleged that the BJP had added fake voters to the voters' list to manipulate elections in Maharashtra and Delhi, and they were trying the same trick in West Bengal. (ANI)