Names of 139 voters, deleted during adjudication, were added to the electoral rolls for the first phase of elections on Thursday after the appellate tribunals cleared their names following a Supreme Court order.

The EC uploaded the list of voters whose names were cleared by the tribunals on its website on Tuesday night. The EC also uploaded a list of applicants whose names were rejected by tribunals.

Though no comprehensive list was put up of voters cleared by the tribunals and those whose appeals against their deletions were rejected, sources in the poll panel said around 650 cases were disposed of.

The 139 names were cleared for inclusion in the rolls spread across the 152 Assembly constituencies where voting would be held on Thursday.

The EC would upload another list of eligible voters once the tribunals clear their names on April 27.

Earlier, after the SIR hearings, 60.06 lakh voters were put under adjudication, and 705 judicial officers were engaged to scrutinise their documents. Based on that, 27 lakh voter names were deleted from the list, and over 32 lakh names were added to the electoral rolls. Those whose names were deleted were allowed to appeal before the 19 tribunals set up by Calcutta High Court as directed by the Supreme Court.

Mobile phones

The EC asked all general observers, police observers, DEOs, SPs and returning officers of the 152 Assembly constituencies that would vote on Thursday to keep their mobile phones on throughout the day. The initiative was taken as it was often alleged in Bengal that political parties or common people were unable to reach officials and observers during emergencies as their mobile phones were found to be switched off. “If the mobile phone of any official is found switched off during the poll day, steps would be initiated against them,” said an EC source.