West Bengal SIR tribunal Judge submits resignation letter, cites long commute

A judge presiding over a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) tribunal in West Bengal has offered to resign, citing the long commute between his residence and his place of work. Justice (Retd.) Indrajit Chatterjee, formerly a judge at the Calcutta High Court, who is presiding over the appellate tribunal in Murshidabad district, has written to the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge, expressing his wish to discontinue with effect from November 2, 2026.

“The government is spending a lot on my vehicle and pilot car. But I have to commute 70 to 80 km from my residence, which takes three to four hours every day. It is difficult to continue under such circumstances,” Justice Chatterjee told The Hindu.

He heads the SIR tribunal number 11, Murshidabad district, where the names of about 4.55 lakh electors have been deleted from the electoral rolls due to ‘logical discrepancies’. Justice Chatterjee said that he has spoken to some of his fellow judges, and at least one of them was also likely to resign soon.

About 27.1 lakh voters were removed from the State’s electoral rolls due to ‘logical discrepancies’ before the Assembly election was held earlier this year. Over 22 lakh voters have filed appeals challenging their exclusion, the Election Commission of India (EC) said in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court.

Justice Chatterjee’s resignation is not the first by a judge presiding over an SIR tribunal. Former Calcutta High Court Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam, among the 19 retired judges appointed to the appellate tribunals, resigned in May this year.

The EC has constituted 19 tribunals in West Bengal to hear appeals related to the inclusion or exclusion of voters from the State’s electoral rolls as part of the SIR exercise.