Deleted from SIR list, Agniveer aspirant gets police clearance after HC prod
Times of India | 2 July 2026
Kolkata: A 20-year-old Agniveer aspirant, who was initially denied a police clearance certificate as his and his father’s names were struck off the SIR roll, secured relief from the SIR appellate tribunal in Cooch Behar, leading to police clearance following the Calcutta High Court’s prod on June 17.
Akash Sarkar has now joined the force as an Agniveer.
After Akash and his father Faruk’s names were struck off the electoral roll, they filed their appeals against the deletion in the appellate tribunal in April. It was only after the Calcutta HC’s Jalpaiguri circuit bench of Justice Bivas Pattanayak on June 17 directed for an expeditious hearing of their appeals that the tribunal on June 25 disposed of their cases and their names were restored. This paved the way for police to issue a clearance certificate, which helped Akash get into the force.
Akash earlier received his police clearance certificate (PCC) in Nov 2025, but its validity expired in six months and he had to reapply. But the authorities kept him hanging. “What could have changed between Nov 2025 and June 2026?” his counsel said.
After repeated approaches, the Sarkars were told Akash’s application was not cleared due to SIR deletion. His counsel Biprojyoti Bhowmik told the HC that while Akash’s grandparents’ names were on the 2002 SIR roll, his father’s was not as he registered as a voter in 2003. Citing a Supreme Court order, he said: “The commission is empowered in the exercise of its constitutional mandate to undertake a limited inquiry into citizenship for the purpose of satisfying itself as to eligibility for inclusion into the electoral roll.”
“Then my client will go to the army and will have internal records. Again and again, the state and home ministry are referring him as a suspect with regard to citizenship. The only way he can come out of it is if his appeal is decided on an urgent basis… His job is at stake, he has cleared all the parts,” the lawyer pleaded. “SIR cannot determine Akash’s citizenship.” Bhowmik pointed out that the police clearance was just to determine if there was any criminal antecedent against Akash and prayed for clearance.
But both the EC and Centre opposed it, saying a police clearance could not be issued without SIR clearance. Representing EC, Advocate Anamika Pandey submitted if the court ordered for expedited hearing, the tribunal would dispose his case within seven days. “In his case when the authorities have deleted his name, the question whether he’s a citizen or not has also been reported to the FRRO from the EC, in terms of Supreme Court order,” Pandey told the HC.