New Delhi, April 25 -- The Supreme Court on Friday applauded the over 92% voter turnout in the first phase of the West Bengal assembly elections, observing that democracy is strengthened when citizens actively exercise their right to vote. A bench, comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi, made the remarks while hearing a batch of petitions challenging the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state. "As a citizen of India, I was very happy to see the percentage of people. people realise their power in democracy through their power to vote. So, when people exercise their right to vote, this strengthens the democratic set-up," said the CJI, calling the 92.25% turnout in Thursday's polling "good". The court also took note of the relative absence of violence during polling - a recurrent concern in the state's electoral history. Justice Bagchi remarked that there had been "almost no incidents of violence", prompting the bench to underline the importance of peaceful democratic participation. "When people acknowledge their power in the ballot, they do not indulge in violence," the CJI observed.P4...