‘All decisions were unanimous’: EC responds to report of objections over SIR

The Election Commission on September 23 said all decisions taken by the poll panel, including those related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, were unanimous, after a media report claimed that two of its three members had repeatedly objected to decisions issued without their knowledge.

The report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections at least 14 times over a 10-month period. The objections reportedly related to issues including changes to Form 6 for new voters, access to electoral-roll databases, voter deletions and appeals connected with the SIR exercise.

Responding to the report, the Election Commission said written observations, queries and suggestions by its members during the drafting stage were part of its regular decision-making process and did not indicate a division in the final decisions.

"The suggestions given by the Commissioners were for further improving the electoral processes," the poll panel said, adding that differing views during deliberations were a normal feature of institutional decision-making.

The Commission said it functions as a multi-member constitutional body under Article 324 of the Constitution, statutory rules and established procedures. It maintained that all official orders, decisions and administrative directions issued by it had full legal sanction.

It also said that focusing on individual internal notes over a 10-month period did not reflect the larger volume of decisions and initiatives undertaken by the Commission.

"All these decisions are an outcome of the unanimous decisions of the full Commission in the past one year," it said.

The Commission cited the conduct of elections and other electoral exercises during the period as evidence of its functioning as a full constitutional body. It said it had also introduced around 40 initiatives and undertaken electoral reforms, including electoral-roll revision through SIR.

The poll panel further addressed concerns relating to its digital systems, saying platforms such as ECINet operate with data-security protocols and audit controls designed to prevent unauthorised access or manipulation.

It added that Electoral Registration Officers and District Election Officers exercise their powers under the law in matters relating to voter registration and deletion.

The clarification came after a report by an English daily triggered a political controversy on Wednesday. The report said Sandhu and Joshi had raised formal objections over several decisions connected to electoral-roll management, including the SIR process.

The report also said the two commissioners had questioned changes to Form 6, raised concerns over the alleged centralisation of electoral-roll data and sought clarity over appeals filed in connection with voter deletions in West Bengal.

The issue drew a sharp response from opposition leaders. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi accused the Election Commission of facilitating "vote chori" and alleged that its actions amounted to an attack on the Constitution. He also targeted Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in a post on X.

Other opposition leaders, including AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, CPI(M) MP John Brittas and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, also criticised the poll panel and called for action against the CEC.

The Election Commission, however, maintained that its recent decisions were taken collectively and reiterated that it remained committed to carrying out its constitutional responsibilities.