India, Feb. 5 -- West Bengal chief minister (CM) Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday became the first sitting CM to personally argue her own petition before the Supreme Court, urging it to "protect democracy" and "people's lives", as the court sought a response from the Election Commission of India (ECI) on withdrawing notices to millions of people over minor spelling variations and dialect-based discrepancies during the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in her state.

Making a dramatic appearance in a white saree and a black scarf, Banerjee made an impassioned 15-minute intervention before the bench, quoting from Rabindranath Tagore and describing ECI as a "WhatsApp Commission". In the packed courtroom, the CM repeated...