New Delhi, 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. A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi also asked ECI to act "carefully" while flagging discrepancies, fixed the next hearing for February 9, and directed the West Bengal government to propose a list of officers conversant with local dialects who could assist the poll panel in resolving errors without excluding genuine voters. The hearing marked a rare moment in the Supreme Court, with Banerjee rising to address the bench in person, alongside senior counsel Shyam Divan, who appeared for her in the matter. In the packed courtroom, the CM repeatedly stressed that she was not fighting for her party, but for voters who risk being struck off the rolls because of clerical and linguistic inconsistencies. "I belong to that state...When justice is crying behind closed doors, we felt we are not getting justice anywhere. I am not fighting for my party. Please protect democracy.Please protect people's lives." Banerjee told the court, as she accused ECI of targeting voters in West Bengal ahead of the 2026 elections. Clad in a traditional white saree along with a black scarf, the CM reached the apex court around 10am, and was sitting in the first row meant for lawyers around 1pm, when the CJI-led bench commenced the hearing. Opening arguments, Divan pressed for urgent interim reliefs, pointing out that the SIR exercise was nearing its deadline even as large numbers of voters remained entangled in the verification process. "Only four days are left.Unmapped voters are 32 lakhs (3.2 million). About 1.36 crore (13.6 million) names are in the logical discrepancy list. Hearings are pending in 63 lakh (6.3 million) cases," contended Divan, placing figures before the court. He argued that the bulk of these stemmed from minor spelling differences, pronunciation variations owing to local dialects, or routine changes such as surnames after marriage. "There are nearly 70 lakh (7 million) cases of minor name mismatches. These cannot become the basis for knocking out names from the electoral rolls," he said, urging the court to direct withdrawal of notices issued solely on such grounds. The bench acknowledged the concern, noting that discrepancies arising from dialect and pronunciation were common across the country. Banerjee then requested the bench to permit her to address the court. "If you can allow me five minutes only," she asked. The CJI responded by saying the court would give her not five but 15 minutes. Banerjee launched a sharp critique of the SIR process, alleging that it had become an exercise aimed only at deletion, not correction or inclusion. "They call it a mismatch even after a woman changes her surname after marriage.Poor people shift houses, buy small flats, and suddenly they are deleted," she said. The CM alleged that despite earlier Supreme Court directions, voters continued to be struck off under the guise of "incorrect mapping". Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, flagged what he described as an "atmosphere of hostility" and sought that ECI's affidavit be brought on record at the next hearing....