New Delhi: After dealing with petitions challenging the special intensive review and deploying judicial officers to conduct an impartial investigation, the Supreme Court on Friday described the record 92 per cent turnout in the first phase of West Bengal assembly elections as a sign of the strong democratic process in the country. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi made the remarks when TMC MP and senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee, a vocal opponent of SIR, said, “A good thing happened. A record 92% turnout happened because all the migrant laborers reached the state to cast their votes due to the fear that if they did not do so, their names would be struck off from the voter list.”

People should realize the power of their vote: CJI Kant

Justice Bagchi said, “Another good thing is that there was no violence during the voting except isolated incidents.” CJI Kant said, “As a citizen of India, I am very happy to see the high percentage of voting. People need to participate in voting.”Solicitor General Tushar Mehta also said the forces did a commendable job in preventing violence which resulted in high turnout. Justice Bagchi cited a Bengali proverb to describe earlier violence during state elections and said, “When kings fight, poor people suffer and die”.CJI Surya Kant said, “People should realize the power of their vote in a democracy. More than 92% people went to vote. When a large number of people go to vote, there is no violence. This shows that people realized that their power lies in the democratic system.”SG Mehta said, “92 per cent voting is historic. Barring sporadic violence, the forces have done a commendable job. We should be grateful to them. The state has a history of violence before and after the elections.”The CJI said, “This shows the fairness of the democratic process. There has been heavy voting in Tamil Nadu also.”Justice Bagchi said, “Voting in the democratic process is something that needs to be protected and respected. Otherwise, the basic essence of democracy will be lost.”Turning to senior advocate DS Naidu, representing Election CommissionJustice Bagchi said, “For the change, Naidu’s client has been appreciated by all.” This unexpected praise for the Election Commission angered Banerjee, who disagreed with it and said that the Calcutta High Court has been reprimanding the Election Commission for the last three days. Naidu protested and said that Banerjee was behaving inappropriately and unfairly. “It is Banerjee who is misusing the Election Commission in the courts,” he said.Mehta requested the bench to end the proceedings and warned that the debate would turn into a political discourse by Trinamool. The bench adjourned by asking both Naidu and Banerjee to have lunch together.