Bengaluru: Protests were held across Karnataka on Wednesday against the alleged arbitrary deletion of voter names from electoral rolls under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
The demonstrations were organised by 'My Vote, My Right', a coalition of civil society groups, unions and activists, which labelled the exercise a "violation of democratic principles."
Protests took place in many districts, including Bengaluru, Bidar, Kodagu, Udupi, Mysuru, Raichur, Vijayanagar, Koppal, Kalaburagi, Belagavi and Tumakuru. In Bengaluru, a group of 30, consisting of lawyers, activists and other concerned citizens, gathered in front of Vidhana Soudha, raising slogans and pledging to defend political equality. Similar demonstrations were seen in localities such as Banashankari, Bilekahalli and KP Agrahara, the group said in a statement.
The protesters cited large-scale voter deletions across states, claiming that over 27 lakh voters in West Bengal, 2.04 crore in Uttar Pradesh, and 74 lakh in Tamil Nadu had been removed. They alleged that the deletions disproportionately affected marginalised communities and could influence electoral outcomes.
The coalition urged Karnataka to take a strong stand against SIR and sought the Supreme Court's intervention in the matter.