Congress Accuses BJP of Voter List Manipulation, Demands Investigation into Election Commission
Congress leader Randeep Surjewala claims BJP has removed 13 crore voters from lists, demanding an investigation into the Election Commissions actions.
Bengaluru, September 24 (Daily Kiran) : Congress General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of “hijacking” the Election Commission of India (ECI). He alleged that through a Special Intensive Review (SIR) campaign, approximately 130 million voters have been removed from voter lists across 19 states.
Surjewala called for an immediate halt to the SIR process and demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. He also urged for an independent investigation into the operations of the Election Commission.
He emphasized that the right to vote is fundamental to democracy, and removing eligible citizens from the voter list undermines their democratic rights. According to Surjewala, since June 2025, the Election Commission has conducted the SIR campaign, resulting in the removal of around 130 million names, including 14.3 million from Karnataka alone. He described this action as unprecedented, claiming it targets eligible voters.
The Congress leader further alleged that the functioning of the three-member Election Commission has become centralized under CEC Gyanesh Kumar, while the other two commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, have raised objections regarding decisions and communications related to the SIR process.
In response, the Election Commission denied any internal disagreements, asserting that all decisions related to the SIR were made unanimously.
Surjewala criticized the centralization of control over the electoral rolls database, which he claimed has limited the roles of electoral registration officials, district election officers, and chief election officers. He also condemned alleged changes to Form-6, used for new voter registrations, which he argues impose additional conditions on first-time voters, potentially hindering their registration.
He pointed to West Bengal, where 1.6 million appeals have been filed against already registered voters. The Election Commission has informed the Supreme Court that a total of 3.831 million appeals have been lodged in the state, including 2.221 million related to adding names and 1.610 million to remove names.
Surjewala demanded an immediate halt to the SIR process in all states, a comprehensive review of voters removed since June 2025, restoration of the statutory powers of various officials, and an independent IT and cyber forensic audit of the electoral rolls database.
He called for the removal of CEC Gyanesh Kumar, criminal action if allegations are proven, and a special parliamentary session to discuss the Election Commission’s operations and the SIR process. Additionally, he suggested that the validity of elections in Bihar and West Bengal should be reviewed to ensure a democratic mandate based on a complete and valid voter list.
