Lucknow, May 27: Rakesh Sachan, a minister in the Uttar Pradesh government, has dismissed the opposition’s allegations regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list as baseless. He emphasized that the process is entirely transparent and conducted in accordance with the Election Commission’s regulations.
In an interview with a news agency, Sachan stated that he has been actively involved in grassroots politics at the assembly level for a long time and has a thorough understanding of the voter list revision process.
He noted that his assembly constituency previously had around 325,000 voters, but due to various reasons, approximately 38,000 voters have been removed from the list. Some have passed away, while others have relocated or moved to different areas.
“The entire process related to the voter list has been completed in an organized manner. All political parties were involved in this process. At that time, the opposition also acknowledged that the work was being done correctly and did not raise any allegations. Now, the opposition has no solid issues left, which is why they are making such claims,” he said.
Sachan explained that the SIR process is not a new arrangement; the Election Commission has implemented it periodically. In 2003, a similar intensive revision was conducted in Uttar Pradesh, during which he was also an MLA and participated with his workers in collaboration with the Election Commission.
He added that during the SIR, the old voter list is canceled, and a new list is prepared. Names of individuals who are deceased or have permanently moved elsewhere are removed. This process is ongoing in several states, including Uttar Pradesh, and all political parties should cooperate.
Regarding petitions challenging the SIR in the Supreme Court, Sachan stated that the Election Commission conducts such revisions every 20 to 22 years. A similar amendment was made in 2003, during which all parties collaborated to update the voter list.
The minister accused the opposition of spreading misinformation, citing similar issues raised in states like Bihar and West Bengal, which were rejected by the public in elections. He asserted that the opposition is attempting to confuse the public, while the SIR process is being conducted entirely under constitutional and democratic frameworks.
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