Can Deleted Voters Lose Welfare Benefits? Supreme Court Takes Up Matter

SC Reviews SIR Voter Deletions

IIE DIGITAL: The Supreme Court has sought responses from the Election Commission of India and the West Bengal government over a plea challenging the denial of welfare benefits to people whose names are removed from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.

The petition argues that removal from the voter list should not automatically prevent individuals from accessing government welfare schemes, including the Public Distribution System, Annapurna scheme and other social security benefits.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana, issued notices on Friday and indicated that the matter may be listed for hearing before July 25.

The plea, filed by Prasenjit Bose, raised concerns over the large number of appeals pending before Special Tribunals formed to examine SIR related disputes. Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the petitioner, said several lakh appeals are still awaiting decisions, while the number of tribunals handling the cases remains limited.

During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel argued that people whose names are removed from electoral rolls could face immediate difficulties, including losing access to essential welfare schemes, even before their cases receive a final decision.

Justice Joymalya Bagchi referred to the Supreme Court’s earlier observations in the Bihar SIR matter and said that removal from the voter list does not by itself decide a person’s citizenship status. He noted that citizenship related decisions have to be taken under the Citizenship Act by the appropriate authorities.

The petitioner’s side, however, maintained that many affected people are already facing hardship due to restrictions on welfare benefits. The plea also sought greater transparency in the functioning of Special Tribunals, including publishing their procedures and decisions online.

The petition further questioned the need for multiple documents during verification and argued that recognised identity documents should be given due importance.

The Supreme Court will now examine whether people affected by SIR related voter list deletions can continue receiving welfare benefits until their citizenship status is formally decided.