The Supreme Court of India has addressed the multiple petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala by segregating the pleas and seeking responses from the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the respective state governments.

The court has directed the ECI to file its responses by December 1. This direction was issued despite the ECI's argument that the situation on the ground is proceeding smoothly and that political leaders are creating unnecessary alarm. The court has scheduled dedicated hearings for Tamil Nadu matters on December 4 and for West Bengal on December 9.

The Kerala government has also filed a petition requesting a deferment of the SIR due to its clash with local body elections scheduled for December 9 and 11. The state government argues that assigning officers to the SIR would negatively impact the smooth conduct of the local polls. The court has agreed to hear the Kerala matter on December 2, recognizing the urgency.

Senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee, who is contesting the West Bengal SIR, stated that 23 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have died by suicide in the state. He requested the court to issue a notice to the state government to file a response, emphasizing the urgency of the matter, as the draft roll is slated to be published by December 9. The bench noted that intervention might be warranted if an alarming situation has occurred in the state, leading to a large number of people being left out.

Several parties and leaders, including Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, functionaries of the Kerala Congress, Communist Party of India (Marxist), and Trinamool Congress leader Dola Sen, are among the petitioners challenging the SIR in the three states.

The Supreme Court has indicated it is open to extending the deadline for the publication of draft electoral rolls in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu if the circumstances justify such relief.

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has faced political criticism, with opposition parties arguing that the exercise is rushed, opaque, and insufficiently consultative, potentially leading to mass deletions of legitimate voters, especially among marginalized groups, migrant workers, and minorities. The DMK and CPI(M) in Tamil Nadu have accused the ECI of initiating the revision without state-level consensus, while the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal has alleged that the SIR could skew the electoral landscape before crucial elections.

The DMK argues that a Special Summary Revision (SSR) was already conducted between October 2024 and January 6, 2025, resulting in an updated electoral roll. Despite this, the ECI initiated a fresh SIR, introducing guidelines requiring citizenship verification, particularly for those absent from the 2003 electoral roll. The petition claims that the ECI is assuming the authority to determine citizenship, a power vested in the Union Government under the Citizenship Act, 1955, effectively turning the SIR into a "de facto NRC".

Conversely, the AIADMK has voiced support for the SIR, deeming it a necessary measure to safeguard electoral integrity and prevent voter fraud.