NDA delegation petitions Gyanesh Kumar seeking EC intervention over SIR ‘irregularities’ in Karnataka

A joint delegation of the BJP and the JD(S) on Tuesday met Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in New Delhi and submitted a memorandum alleging “large-scale” procedural violations in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Karnataka.

The delegation urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to order a re-verification of the exercise.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) delegation alleged that the revision process was not being carried out in accordance with the ECI’s prescribed guidelines and submitted what it described as documentary and video evidence to support its claims.

According to the memorandum, enumeration forms were allegedly being filled in bulk at community halls, anganwadis, convention centres, mosques and other locations instead of following the mandatory door-to-door verification by Booth Level Officers (BLOs). The delegation also alleged that WhatsApp groups were being used to mobilise people to such locations for the SIR exercise.

No mandatory verification visits

The NDA leaders further alleged that the mandatory verification visits by the BLOs were not being carried out, relatives were being accepted for verification without adherence to the prescribed eligibility criteria, and persons sharing only a common surname were being treated as members of the same family without proper verification, potentially leading to errors in the electoral rolls.

Questioning the pace of the exercise, the memorandum stated that nearly 72% of the SIR work had been completed within six days of its launch on June 30, and argued that such rapid progress raised doubts over whether the prescribed verification procedures had been followed.

Re-verification

The delegation urged the ECI to order re-verification of all enumeration forms already collected, ensure mandatory door-to-door verification, appoint Central Observers from outside Karnataka for every district to oversee the SIR process, and initiate legal and disciplinary action against officials and political functionaries found responsible for alleged violation.

The delegation comprised Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi, H.D. Kumaraswamy, V. Somanna and Shobha Karandlaje and Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly R. Ashok, among others.

Meanwhile, distribution of enumeration forms for the SIR of electoral rolls in the State crossed 77% on Tuesday as of 6 p.m. However, digitisation of the collected forms remained at 7.72%.