Full Breakdown
Controversy Over India’s Special Intensive Revision of Electoral Rolls Escalates
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
Opposition parties, civil-society groups and former officials have launched protests, legal petitions and parliamentary moves demanding the removal or resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The agitation centers on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, a nationwide exercise that began in June 2025 and is criticised for alleged unlawful deletions and centralised control of voter data.
Background & Context
SIR aims to cleanse voter lists by removing deceased, duplicate or ineligible entries. The Election Commission of India (ECI) issued the SIR order on June 24 2025 with claimed unanimous approval. An investigation by *The Indian Express* (reported Sept 23 2026) revealed that Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi formally objected at least 14 times over ten months to decisions taken without their knowledge, including changes to Form 6 and database centralisation. The Commission says dissent is “a normal part of deliberation” and that all SIR orders have full legal sanction.
Timeline
- June 24 2025 – SIR order issued (unanimous, Supreme Court-upheld).
- Sept 23 2026 – *Indian Express* reports internal objections.
- Sept 24 2026 – Maharashtra CEO S Chockalingam writes to EC officials requesting software changes.
- Sept 26 2026 – Full commission meets; announces procedural adjustments.
- Sept 27 2026 – MLA Rohit Pawar warns deletions could rise to nearly 3 crore.
- Sept 28 2026 – Congress protests in Maharashtra, demanding Kumar’s removal.
- Sept 29 2026 – Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel pledges continued protests.
- Oct 5 2026 – Bombay High Court hearing of a petition challenging SIR in Maharashtra.
- Oct 12 2026 – Extended deadline for filing claims in Maharashtra.
- Oct 22 2026 – Additional High Court hearing on a writ petition.
Official Statements & Responses
The Election Commission maintains that all SIR orders received unanimous consent from the three commissioners and that the Supreme Court upheld the added declaration on Form 6 for the SIR period.
Criticism & Opposition
Opposition leaders argue that SIR violates statutory provisions and disenfranchises vulnerable voters. Former Union Home Secretary R.K. Asaduddin Owaisi labelled SIR a “backdoor NRC,” alleging that the law governing election-commissioner appointments places the body under executive control.
On-the-Ground Reports
Protest marches spanned Maharashtra districts—including Pune, Nagpur, Nashik, Kolhapur, Solapur, Thane and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar—where Congress workers displayed effigies of Kumar and submitted memoranda to district collectors. In Delhi, Congress members marched from their office to the Election Commission building, citing mass deletions in slum clusters. Police in Bhopal used water-cannon to disperse demonstrators attempting to breach barricades.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
- Decision-making: Internal notes suggest unilateral orders by the CEC, whereas the Commission asserts unanimity.
- Impact assessment: Opposition claims deletions disproportionately affect poor and marginalized voters, but the Commission has not released constituency-wise data.
What’s Next
The Bombay High Court will hear the Maharashtra petition on Oct 5 2026 and again on Oct 22 2026. The Election Commission has extended filing deadlines to Oct 12 2026 and the disposal deadline to Nov 10 2026, while continuing eased notice procedures and home-visit document collection. Opposition parties plan a coordinated parliamentary strategy to seek the CEC’s removal and demand an independent audit of the SIR process.