With reference to the Election Commission (ECI) tribunals and electoral grievances, consider the following statements: 1. A total of 38.31 lakh appeals have been cleared by the tribunals. 2. Only 16 out of 19 Election Commission tribunals are currently functional. 3. The Calcutta High Court noted a 21-year clearance timeline for appeals. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

19,000 voters disenfranchised as Calcutta High Court notes 21-year clearance timeline

GS2Polity · Governance · IR· Elections, ECI & electoral reforms· Prelims + Mains· 5 October 2026

Institutional delays in electoral grievance redressal: a GS2 case study on the right to vote.

Why in news

The Calcutta High Court highlighted the disenfranchisement of 19,000 voters in Nandigram and Rejinagar due to a 21-year backlog in Appellate Tribunal clearances.

Background

The Calcutta High Court noted that only 1.26 lakh out of 38.31 lakh appeals have been cleared. Currently, only 16 out of 19 Election Commission (ECI) tribunals are functional following the resignation of three judges.

Facts for Prelims

Fact19,000 voters in Nandigram and Rejinagar were disenfranchised for the October 6, 2026 byelections.
FactOnly 16 out of 19 Election Commission (ECI) tribunals remain functional.
FactThe Calcutta High Court noted a 21-year clearance timeline for appeals.
FactTotal pending appeals cited: 38.31 lakh.

Prelims practice question

With reference to the Election Commission (ECI) tribunals and electoral grievances, consider the following statements:

A total of 38.31 lakh appeals have been cleared by the tribunals.
Only 16 out of 19 Election Commission tribunals are currently functional.
The Calcutta High Court noted a 21-year clearance timeline for appeals.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a)1 only
(b)3 only
(c)1 and 2 only
(d)2 and 3 only

Show answer

Answer: (d) 2 and 3 only — Statements 2 and 3 are correct. Statement 1 is incorrect: Only 1.26 lakh out of 38.31 lakh appeals have been cleared.

For Mains

Q. Discuss the institutional challenges in the electoral grievance redressal mechanism and its impact on the fundamental right to vote.

Dimensions to cover in your answer

Judicial bottleneck: Severe backlog in Appellate Tribunals delaying voter list corrections
Administrative vacancy: Functional deficit in ECI tribunals due to judicial resignations
Democratic erosion: Prolonged disenfranchisement undermining the principle of universal adult suffrage

Keywords: disenfranchisement · electoral grievance · judicial backlog · universal adult suffrage · administrative efficiency

Read the full news →Source: The Hindu ↗

More Polity & Constitution notes

SC rules against complete Delhi Metro prohibition to balance safety with commuter rights · 10 October 2026
PIL seeks writ of mandamus to fill vacancies in 14 Maharashtra government bodies · 10 October 2026
MP High Court strikes down law increasing OBC reservation from 14% to 27% · 10 October 2026
ECI caps voter deletion requests at 10 after Karnataka bulk filing controversy · 10 October 2026
Tamil Nadu files Supreme Court affidavit accusing Karnataka of resource hoarding · 10 October 2026
Kerala government to request President return Private Universities Bill via Article 201 · 9 October 2026

All Polity & Constitution current affairs →

This note is generated automatically from SatyaDheesh's news feed and mapped to the UPSC CSE syllabus. Check facts against the original report or PIB before using them in an answer.