‘SIR is demonetisation of Indian vote’: Gaurav Gogoi attacks poll panel chief over voter roll revision

Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi has criticised Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that the poll panel chief is being protected by the BJP-led political establishment to continue with the exercise.

Gogoi made the remarks while commenting on the ongoing legal challenge to the SIR exercise in West Bengal. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the matter on October 5, a day before the October 6 bypolls in Rejinagar and Nandigram.

Sharing a report on the hearing, Gogoi said the right to vote remained fundamental irrespective of the type of election being held.

“It does not matter whether they are elections for the Parliament, Assembly, municipality, panchayat, Sixth Schedule tribal autonomous councils, whether general or bye-elections. The right to vote of an Indian citizen is fundamental to preserving our Constitution and protecting our democratic values.”

He further described the SIR exercise as “the demonetisation of the Indian vote”, drawing a comparison with the 2016 demonetisation exercise.

Gogoi also alleged that Kumar was being protected by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the BJP-RSS ecosystem.

“Gyanesh Kumar is being protected by PM Modi, HM Amit Shah, the BJP-RSS ecosystem so that he can continue to implement the SIR,” he said.

The Congress leader alleged that the Chief Election Commissioner’s role was linked to managing elections in states where the SIR exercise has been undertaken or is proposed.

“His task is to manage all the state elections from 2025 Bihar, 2026 WB-Assam to 2027 UP and so forth,” Gogoi said.

The remarks came as the Supreme Court considered an urgent plea concerning the West Bengal SIR process. During the hearing, counsel sought an earlier listing, pointing to the October 6 Rejinagar bypoll and saying that thousands of appeals had not yet been decided.

The Chief Justice, however, said the matter would be heard on October 5, observing that the elections in question were only bye-elections.

The SIR has remained a contentious issue, with opposition parties questioning the process of revising electoral rolls, while the Election Commission has maintained that the exercise is aimed at ensuring accurate voter lists. The scale of the revision has also triggered legal challenges and scrutiny over the deletion and restoration of names.