No evidence of wrongdoing in SIR, says Bengal Minister Dilip Ghosh

West Bengal Minister Dilip Ghosh defended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, stating there is no evidence of wrongdoing, despite a report of two Election Commissioners objecting to the process. The ECI called it normal.

Ghosh Defends Electoral Roll Revision

West Bengal Minister Dilip Ghosh on Thursday defended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, saying there was no evidence to establish that anything had gone wrong, amid a political row over a report that two Election Commissioners had raised objections to decisions related to the exercise. Speaking to reporters here, Ghosh reacted to an Indian Express report which said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally objected at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders issued in connection with electoral-roll procedures. The reported concerns included changes to Form 6, voter deletions and the handling of electoral-roll data.

“SIR was even discussed in court, and people did approach the judiciary, but none of the claims held any water. There is no evidence to prove that anything went wrong. It is not as if the name of someone who is not a citizen was included illegally; if that had happened, the production of the relevant document would lead to the name being included,” Ghosh said. He further hit out at the Opposition, saying, “Ultimately, the opposition has nothing substantial to do. They cannot even field candidates for the by-elections here. Who would listen to them?”

ECI Calls Objections 'Normal Internal Functioning'

The Election Commission, meanwhile, said the reported queries and observations by its members were part of its normal internal functioning. The poll panel said written notes, technical suggestions and internal checks were standard practices aimed at ensuring legal compliance and safeguarding voter rights. The ECI also maintained that all its official decisions, including those concerning SIR, had full legal sanction and that the final decisions of the Commission were unanimous.

Report Sparks Political Row

The Indian Express report, however, said the two Election Commissioners had raised concerns on several aspects of electoral-roll management, including changes to Form 6 and the centralisation of access to the voter database. The report has triggered sharp reactions from Opposition parties, with several leaders demanding greater scrutiny of the Election Commission's decision-making process and questioning Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's functioning. The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the poll panel and described internal deliberations as part of democratic functioning. (ANI)

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