Congress sharpens ‘vote chori’ attack after former CEC questions SIR

• Congress says opposition to the handling of electoral rolls is growing, citing former CEC O.P. Rawat’s criticism of the SIR

• INDIA bloc plans nationwide protests and an 6 October march by opposition MPs to the Election Commission

• The EC maintains that differences among commissioners are part of normal deliberations and its orders comply with the law

The Congress on Thursday intensified its criticism of the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, saying opposition to what it described as the capture of the electoral system was growing and citizens would no longer accept “vote chori”.

Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh cited former chief election commissioner O.P. Rawat’s remarks questioning the revision exercise and the commission’s handling of it. He said the INDIA bloc remained committed to defending the Constitution and democracy.

In a post on X, Ramesh referred to Rawat’s interview with The Hindu, in which the former CEC said the scale of eligible voters losing their voting rights was unprecedented since Independence. Ramesh claimed that nearly 14 crore voters had been disenfranchised through the SIR.

The Congress leader also said the Election Commission, once regarded as the “gold standard”, had suffered a collapse in credibility. Citing Rawat’s assessment, he argued that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi should have acted more firmly against decisions taken by chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Rawat told the newspaper that the two commissioners could have sought a vote during commission meetings to overturn decisions they opposed. Together, they held a majority, he pointed out, and the CEC had no veto.

Ramesh’s remarks came a day after the INDIA bloc agreed on a joint protest programme over electoral roll revisions and its concerns about the conduct of elections.

Leaders from 19 political parties attended the meeting, which lasted more than three-and-a-half hours. The grouping announced “save democracy” marches in every district and five major rallies, alongside a demand that future elections be conducted using ballot papers.

Opposition MPs are scheduled to march to the Election Commission on 6 October. Bloc leaders also plan to meet the President to raise concerns about irregularities they say have occurred during the revision of voter lists.

The alliance urged the Supreme Court to expedite cases concerning the SIR and electoral “malpractices”. It also discussed its demand for Kumar’s resignation and said it would continue pressing for his removal.

The opposition’s campaign follows an Indian Express report that Sandhu and Joshi had recorded objections on at least 14 occasions over the past 10 months to SIR-related decisions and orders. According to the report, the two commissioners said those directions had been issued without their knowledge or recommendation.

The Election Commission has defended its functioning, saying differing opinions and observations are a routine feature of institutional deliberations. It maintains that all its orders have legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.

With PTI inputs