Former Calcutta HC Chief Justice T S Sivagnanam resigns from Bengal SIR tribunal

Former Calcutta High Court Chief Justice T S Sivagnanam has resigned from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) Tribunal in West Bengal, citing personal reasons. Justice Sivagnanam submitted his resignation on Thursday and informed the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, the Election Commission of India and the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal. He was among the 19 retired judges appointed as single-member appellate tribunals to hear appeals related to electoral roll revisions in the state.

Justice Sivagnanam had been appointed to the tribunal following directions from the Supreme Court of India. The apex court had ordered the formation of an appellate mechanism for voters whose names were deleted during the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal. He was also entrusted with hearing specific appeals, including those filed by Suprabuddha Sen, grandson of artist Nandalal Bose, and Congress leader Motab Shaikh, who later won from the Farakka Assembly constituency.

The tribunal system was established after the Supreme Court directed the appointment of judicial officers to examine the eligibility of electors affected during the revision process. A total of 60.06 lakh electors were placed under adjudication, following which 27.16 lakh names were deleted from the voter rolls after scrutiny conducted by judicial officers. Subsequently, the Supreme Court ordered the setting up of appellate tribunals to hear challenges related to exclusions and inclusions in the electoral rolls.

Justice Sivagnanam was also part of a three-member committee constituted to determine the procedure for disposal of appeals before the tribunals. The committee included retired Justice Pradipta Roy and retired Justice Pranab Kumar Deb. The tribunal office functioned from the National Institute of Water and Sanitation building at Joka on Diamond Harbour Road, where appeals from affected voters were heard.

The Supreme Court had earlier exercised its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to allow restoration of names in the electoral rolls if appeals were cleared within specified deadlines before polling phases in West Bengal. The court had directed that voters whose appeals were accepted before the notified dates would be allowed to vote. Justice Sivagnanam retired as Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court in September last year after serving a two-year tenure.