KOLKATA: Former Calcutta High Court Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam resigned from the State Information and Records (SIR) tribunal in West Bengal on Thursday, citing personal reasons. In his resignation letter addressed to Calcutta High Court Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and the Election Commission, he expressed his inability to continue. The announcement was made by Debashis Konar.
Record of Clearing Appeals
During his tenure, Justice Sivagnanam cleared 1,777 appeals over 22 days, rejecting none. He noted that at the current pace, the tribunal would require four years to dispose of all pending appeals in Kolkata. Initially appointed to handle petitions from North 24 Parganas and Kolkata, he also conducted hearings for cases from Malda, Murshidabad, and Birbhum, as referred by the Supreme Court.
Notable Cases
The first petitioner to have his name cleared by the tribunal was Md Mahatab Sheikh, who won the Farakka assembly seat on a Congress ticket. Justice Sivagnanam also restored the voting rights of Suprabuddha Sen, grandson of eminent painter Nandalal Bose, and his wife Deepa Sen. He stated, "I approached the appeals with an open mind. Later, I verified the appeals from Kolkata South and Kolkata North."
He operated daily from 8:30 am to 5 pm, including Sundays, without staff assistance. He heard appeals from nuns of the Missionaries of Charity, allowing 30 or more to vote, despite discrepancies in their certificates. "I did not reject any appeal," he added.
Challenges and Suggestions
Justice Sivagnanam highlighted that one lakh appeals remain pending. He faced issues with online appeals due to word-count restrictions on the portal. "Judges are accustomed to giving long orders, but the portal has word-count restrictions, so I started giving orders in four to five lines to accommodate this," he explained. While he is accustomed to e-court proceedings, he noted that not all ex-judges are tech-savvy. He praised the technical support from the state government for the 19 tribunals.
The former judge emphasized the need for a special button in the system to send notices to applicants. He is scheduled to fly back to Chennai on Friday.
