Urgency grips West Bengal’s judiciary as the Calcutta High Court revokes all leaves for officers handling the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) workload. Following the Supreme Court’s order on February 24, 2026, this blanket ban addresses a staggering 45 lakh-plus pending matters in voter list verifications.
The sweeping order applies to Civil Judges (Senior and Junior Divisions), Chief Judicial Magistrates, and their additional counterparts, including those on deputation. Only genuine medical crises exempt personnel; others cannot proceed on any leave.
Officers on approved breaks must return by 25 February 2026, 12 PM sharp. Transfers proceed sans transit leaves, and select officers ordered back early to assume charges. All trainings, bar probationers’, at the Judicial Academy or elsewhere, stand postponed indefinitely.
To streamline operations, district-level panels are constituted. The court has issued a stern advisory: violations will trigger disciplinary measures. This aligns with the apex court’s vision to prioritize SIR disputes, dominated by logical discrepancy categories.
The context is clear—electoral rolls riddled with anomalies risk undermining polls. By mobilizing the entire judicial cadre, the High Court aims for rapid adjudication, clearing backlogs that have piled up. This development could set a precedent for handling mega-scale electoral cleanups nationwide, reinforcing faith in the system.