23 Opposition parties write to Indian Chief Justice over electoral rolls fudging
New Delhi : Twenty-three Opposition parties and Independent MP Kapil Sibal have written to the Chief Justice of India, seeking urgent intervention against the Election Commission’s controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, terming it a deliberate attempt at fudging voter lists that could have far-reaching and dangerous consequences for the country’s democratic process.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the parties sent a joint memorandum to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, raising concerns over SIR undertaken in states such as Bihar and West Bengal, besides similar exercises underway elsewhere. Among the signatories are Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), neither of which attended the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc meeting on June 8 where the decision to approach the judiciary was taken.
Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien said AAP and DMK had now joined the initiative. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the decision was taken at the INDIA Janbandhan meeting attended by 21 political parties and one Independent. “The Opposition parties remain firmly anchored in SURE—Solidarity, Unity and Resistance,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Trinamool Congress MP Sagarika Ghose said the Opposition had appealed to the judiciary over “the manner in which the SIR process is being manipulated by the BJP”.
The letter also raises concerns about the Election Commission’s functioning, sources said. The Congress and other Opposition parties have been questioning the SIR exercise, alleging it could lead to disenfranchisement of eligible voters. Election Commission data shows nearly six crore names deleted from rolls so far, including over 5.18 crore in the second phase alone. While the poll panel says the exercise ensures only eligible voters remain, Opposition parties have criticised it as a “backdoor National Register of Citizens”, alleging arbitrary deletions and documentation-related issues.
