The SIR controversy

Time of India

17 hours ago

The controversy of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls carried out in Bihar seems to be a never-ending political battle. It would be beneficial for all to remember that India thrives on perceptions and controversies. False or half-truth narratives built by vested interests are a potent tool for our politicians to sway voters. Sometimes these false narratives are also created at the behest of anti-national elements, both within and outside the country. Therefore, at some point, such controversies must be dealt with decisively before they can harm the nation.
The EC prepares and maintains the electoral rolls as mandated by the Constitution of India. These lists are updated continually due to various reasons, including deaths, new voter additions, migration, among others. Therefore, any apprehensions that the EC does so under pressure from the government are misplaced. Normally, the onus should be on citizens themselves to inform the local authorities if a name has to be deleted or added. Unfortunately, as a society, we lack such civic responsibilities. Therefore, the responsibility to do so rests with the EC. In the country's over-packed election calendar, such exercises will have to be conducted intensively during the short free periods available.
Much has been written and said about Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar over the last six weeks. Charges, counter-charges, allegations, and explanations are being traded between the EC, opposition parties, and the government. Unfortunately, the controversy rages on. The opposition is accusing the EC of manipulating the voter lists in Bihar before the next elections to favour the NDA. In his press conference on 07 August 2025, the LOP claimed that the NDA and EC had played similar dirty tricks in the last elections in Karnataka and Maharashtra. He backed these claims with some data from his party's internal investigation.
The question that arises here is, if the LOP has convincing data of such a fraud, why has he not submitted it to the EC formally? Is it not incumbent on him to do so as he holds a constitutional post equivalent to a cabinet minister? Given his position in the parliament, the EC will always be ready to give him a patient hearing. But the problem is with the Gandhi scion himself. He refuses to sit formally with the EC and instead makes declarations of all kinds on the streets or in front of the media. His aim is clear. He wishes to incite the public and build a public opinion against the government. He has no genuine interest in resolving any issue through the correct channels in the public interest.
Mr Sharad Pawar, the NC (P) founder and a member of the Rajya Sabha, made a statement in Nagpur on Saturday, 09 August 2025, where he said, 'Last year, before the Maharashtra assembly polls were declared, two people came to meet me in Delhi. They told me that of 288 assembly seats in Maharashtra, they can guarantee victory for us in 160.' He further stated, 'I did not have any reason to suspect EC. I also thought during polls, we run into such people, and so I ignored them.' He confirmed that the same people also met Rahul Gandhi. Taking the high pedestal, Mr Pawar concluded by saying that he and Rahul Gandhi decided not to pursue the matter further and allow fate to decide their fortunes. Yet, he maintains that the claims of LOP must be investigated.
Maharashtra was a state that Mr. Pawar and Rahul Gandhi wanted to win at any cost. While they may be lauded for their righteous approach, it is hard to believe that they passed the opportunity. But if they did because they neither suspected the EC nor believed in the possibility of manipulation by the people who approached them, then why are they making such a hue and cry about possible frauds in electoral rolls? Mr. Gandhi, in his press conference, admitted that there were serious issues of duplicate, fake, invalid, and multiple entries of voters at the same address. If he is so convinced, then he should welcome the SIR in Bihar before the next elections, rather than seeing it as a fraud against the opposition. Mr. Gandhi's reluctance to discuss the issue with the EC in a formal manner and Mr. Pawar's belated claims give the impression that they are neither serious nor convinced.
The EC does not carry out such revisions in isolation. In Bihar, there were nearly 150,000 Booth-level Agents (BLA) of different parties who were part of the SIR exercise with Block Level Officers (BLO). Surprisingly, no representations have been filed against any wrong deletions by the EC by any of the BLAs. The irony is that Mr Tejasvi Yadav, leader of RJD, was himself exposed for having two entries in the electoral rolls with separate unique numbers. The one he flashed to reporters, claiming his voter card's unique number had been deleted, turned out to be bogus. A simple check revealed that he had contested the 2020 elections using another voter card with a different unique number. He used the same card in the 2024 elections. If a senior leader like Mr. Yadav has two voter identities, imagine the state of affairs in the entire state.
In this regard, this is what Congress's senior minister K N Rajanna had to say to the media about Rahul Gandhi's charges in Karnataka, 'One should remember that voter lists were revised when our government was at the helm. Why did our party turn a blind eye then? It is true that there are irregularities, but it is insulting for us that it happened right under our noses.' Perhaps in Karnataka, the discrepancies favoured Congress at that time. Within a couple of hours of this statement, Mr. Rajanna was stripped of his cabinet rank and suspended from the party. This is the internal democracy in Congress where no internal dissent is permitted.
In the current environment, there is a strong possibility that this false narrative may raise questions about the credibility of the government, EC, and, in turn, the nation's democratic credentials. Notably, it also harms the image of the world's largest democracy. The onus to prevent all this lies squarely on the government. Therefore, it is time to act and take the bull by the horns. The starting point will be the claims by Mr Gandhi in his press conference and Mr. Pawar's statement. It is immaterial if either of them has not approached the government formally. It is time for the government to take the initiative, either through the EC or the Supreme Court, by filing a suitable case. These leaders cannot be allowed to present their cases only on the streets or in the media without accepting any responsibility. National interests demand that they be asked to substantiate their claims formally, and the matter be investigated to settle it one way or the other.
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Views expressed above are the author's own.