Election Commission to change portal software so Bengal tribunal judges can upload orders

The Election Commission of India is likely to update the ECINet portal software to let Appellate Tribunal judges in West Bengal e-sign and upload orders without Aadhaar authentication. Over 38 lakh voter cases remain stuck across the 19 Appellate Tribunals in the State.

Background

This system change follows complaints from tribunal judges that the current requirement for Aadhaar verification on the portal was blocking them from issuing final orders. The Supreme Court had previously ordered the creation of these separate appellate bodies so citizens could challenge decisions made by judicial officers on doubtful and pending voter cases.

Context

Appellate tribunals and special voter verification drives are part of extensive legal and administrative efforts to clean up electoral rolls and resolve disputed identities. When large-scale voter list revisions take place, sorting through millions of doubtful entries often creates heavy backlogs in the judicial system.