Guwahati: A broad coalition of retired judges, academics, activists, former bureaucrats, writers and civil society organisations from across the country has called for an immediate halt to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that the exercise has led to large-scale exclusion of legitimate voters and undermined public confidence in the Election Commission of India (ECI).
In a joint statement issued on Saturday, the signatories accused the ECI of acting in a "partisan" manner and questioned the constitutional validity of the ongoing revision process. They also urged the Supreme Court to expedite hearings on petitions challenging the SIR exercise.
The statement alleged that nearly six crore "rightful voters" had been deprived of their franchise in the 10 states and three Union Territories where the SIR process had already been conducted.
Referring to West Bengal, the signatories claimed that around 35 lakh voters seeking adjudication were denied verification and consequently lost their voting rights.
The groups described the SIR exercise as "exclusionary, undemocratic, non-transparent and unscientific", alleging that minorities, Dalits, Adivasis, migrant workers, daily wage labourers and nomadic communities were disproportionately affected. The statement further claimed that women had faced a particularly severe impact.
The signatories also cited instances of notices allegedly being issued to prominent individuals, including Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, former Navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash and cricketer Mohammed Shami, arguing that such cases reflected flaws in the verification process.
Demanding a comprehensive review before further implementation, the groups said no legitimate election process could proceed without ensuring the inclusion of all eligible voters.
They called for stringent audit and verification mechanisms, greater transparency in electoral roll revisions, and restoration of names allegedly removed during the process.
The statement further proposed the creation of a common voter list from the Gram Sabha to Parliament level, arguing that locally verified rolls would reduce disputes and prevent wrongful exclusions.
The signatories also accused the ECI of losing institutional credibility and demanded reforms in the appointment and oversight process of the poll body through "transparent and unbiased parliamentary supervision".
The statement additionally warned against alleged attempts to influence electoral outcomes in states such as West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
Among those who endorsed the statement were former Supreme Court judge Justice B Sudarshan Reddy, political commentator Parakala Prabhakar, actor Prakash Raj, activist Yogendra Yadav, filmmaker Anand Patwardhan, journalist Patricia Mukhim and several academics, social activists and civil society representatives from across India.