Mostari Banu & Ors v Election Commission of India & Ors, with connected petitions including Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury v Election Commission of India

Supreme Court lets Calcutta High Court deploy civil judges for SIR duty

Days after ordering district judges and retired judges deployed for West Bengal's SIR, the Supreme Court permitted the Calcutta High Court to also deploy civil judges with at least three years' experience, and said judicial officers could be brought in from outside the state if needed to clear the backlog.

Follows and extends sir-rules-wb-judicial-adjudication (2026-02-20) and precedes sir-rules-wb-appellate-tribunals (2026-03-20). Not previously recorded.

• TIER 3 · PRESSWest Bengal SIR: Supreme Court allows deployment of civil judges, says bring judicial officers from outside if neededBar and Bench2026-02-24