Bengal election chief seeks 7-day extension for SIR hearings
West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal said that the appeal to extend the final date of SIR hearing was made following inputs from seven to eight districts where different stages of the process were still pending.
West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal on Saturday requested the Election Commission of India to extend the final date of hearing under SIR of electoral rolls by seven days, after several district election officers reported delays in completion of hearings, verification, and data uploading.
The deadline for the hearing under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was February 7.
Agarwal told reporters that the appeal was made following inputs from seven to eight districts where different stages of the process were still pending.
"I have appealed to extend the last date of hearing for seven days after receiving inputs from seven to eight district election officers. In some places, the process of hearing is yet to be over, while in others uploading, verification, and final decisions by the AEROs and EROs are still pending," Agarwal said.
He said if allowed, hearings will now continue till February 14, adding that the final electoral roll, which was earlier scheduled to be published on February 14, is likely to be delayed.
According to Agarwal, around 96–97 per cent of hearings have been completed so far, with only about three per cent pending in a few districts.
"Uploading is around 75–80 per cent complete, while 15–20 per cent of the work is still pending," he said.
The CEO added that if the remaining processes are completed within the extended timeline, the final voter list could be published around the last week of this month.