Owaisi alleges SIR is 'backdoor NRC', questions ECI over dissent

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi alleged the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls is a "backdoor NRC." He questioned the ECI over reported internal dissent, difficulties faced by voters, and changes to forms, despite the ECI's denial of any rift.

Owaisi Alleges 'Backdoor NRC' in Electoral Roll Revision

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday alleged that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of electoral rolls was a “backdoor NRC”, and questioned the Election Commission of India over reported differences among commissioners regarding decisions linked to the electoral process.

Owaisi’s remarks came after a report by The Indian Express claimed that the decisions taken during the SIR process were objected to by two of the three Election Commissioners. According to the report, "Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi raised objections at least 14 times over the last 10 months regarding decisions and orders issued without their knowledge."

Speaking to ANI in Hyderabad, Owaisi said, “Look, whether we join forces or not is a matter for the future. But we have been telling the authorities from the very beginning that this is a backdoor NRC. And let me reiterate: the country's Home Minister has set up a commission, headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, to examine the demographic changes in areas where the final NRC list has been published; the Home Minister has stated that they will review that final list,” he added.

“So, what does that imply? It proves our point that this is a backdoor NRC; sooner or later, this government will implement the NRC and use this process as the foundation. You will be made to stand in line again, told to produce your documents,” Owaisi said.

Voter Hardships and Form 6 Issues Flagged

The AIMIM chief said people in his constituency were facing difficulties over missing names in electoral lists. “I see the immense trouble people in my constituency are facing—those whose names didn't appear and are suffering. Even with the MIM help desk assisting them online to get their names included,” he said.

“People often don't even realise their names are missing from the draft list. When we tell them, they say, ‘But we are alive!’ They have submitted proof linking themselves to their parents and grandparents, yet their names didn't appear. Now, they are filing 'Form 6' applications,” he added.

Owaisi further questioned the requirement of submitting declarations under Form 6, saying, “And when you file 'Form 6', you are required to submit a declaration. This part isn't making sense, and now you can't even go to court; the Supreme Court has dismissed the matter, so what is to be done?”

Questions Raised on ECI's Internal Coordination

“I had issued a statement at that time as well, saying if even within the Election Commission itself, someone is unaware -- if someone inside the Commission doesn't know how things are being handled -- then tell me what kind of message are we sending to the country?” he added.

“Considering what the Indian Express published, what those two reporters wrote, well, this implies there is absolutely no coordination among the Election Commissioners; two Election Commissioners on 14 occasions have submitted notes of dissent. Now, we don't know, given that notes of dissent were submitted—how a unanimous decision could have been reached; it is unclear, and likely didn't happen,” he alleged.

Speaking about alleged changes to the Form 6, Owaisi said, “Regarding the declaration in Form 6, the former Election Commissioners stated that the Election Commission of India does not have the authority to alter Form 6, because doing so would require amending the law—a power they do not possess. There is no mention of that either."

ECI Denies Rift, Says Decisions were Unanimous

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday said all decisions related to the schedule of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls were taken with the "unanimous approval of the Commission", and clarified that a letter sent to the Cabinet Secretary was related to the functioning of an officer on deputation and not any policy matter of the poll body.

Owaisi Criticises ECI's Explanation and Appointment Process

Questioning the ECI, the AIMIM chief said, "The complaint lodged with the Cabinet Secretary stated that they were being kept in the dark and not consulted. The question arises: why was a letter written to the Cabinet Secretary? You are a constitutional body.”

“Even if we accept the current explanation—that it concerned an officer on deputation—you could simply remove that officer, couldn't you? What was the need to write a letter? You are a constitutional body,” he said.

Owaisi also criticised the process of appointing Election Commissioners, saying, “That is precisely what I said when this bill was introduced in Parliament in 2023–24: if the government itself selects the Chief Election Commissioner in this manner, then their credibility in the eyes of the public will inevitably be called into question. And unfortunately, what I predicted is proving to be true. Because you included the Law Minister and the Leader of the Opposition (LoP)—that creates a 2:1 ratio right there."

While the ECI maintained that their decisions were unanimous, Owaisi asked the poll body to disclose the decisions taken. He said, “What exactly was decided? You should disclose that. You simply stated that various decisions were taken across the country and everything was balanced, issuing a press note to that effect.”

Impact on Voters and State-Specific Concerns

He questioned the impact of the SIR process on people whose names did not appear in final electoral rolls. “You imposed a declaration requirement; the names of 10 crore people did not appear in the final electoral roll. Now, if those 10 crore people submit their names in Form 6,” Owaisi said.

“Regarding Bengal—well, there are those 26 lakh people; a tribunal or a court is yet to be set up there, unlike in other states. Suppose your name appeared in the final SIR. Now, your son is 18 years old. Tell me, what will your 18-year-old son or daughter do then?” he asked.

Concerns Over Ground-Level Implementation

On the role of Booth Level Officers (BLOs), Owaisi said, “We are seeing in Hyderabad and Telangana just how much time it took for a BLO to simply deliver a notice to a voter—informing them that their name has appeared in a notice, or that there is an anomaly, or that their mapping hasn't been done (they are 'unmapped'), or notifying them of an age gap discrepancy between them and their father, or regarding their six siblings.”

“It took so much time just to distribute those notices,” he said. “If any political party is still actively working on the ground across Telangana—distributing notices and the like—it is the MIM party,” Owaisi claimed.

Questioning the role of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), he said, “But you have stripped the ERO of their power, haven't you? The senior officers sitting there are the ones who will decide; tell me, what power does the ERO have left now? Hearings will take place—preferably online—only in exceptional circumstances decided by the ERO. How will this work?."

“In Telangana, we didn't have the NRC, nor were Permanent Resident Certificates issued; the ECI rejected the family registers we had, citing issues that arose in Bihar. How is this supposed to work? How is it possible? How will you manage it?” Owaisi alleged.

However, in a press note issued after a meeting of the Commission, the ECI said the SIR process was initiated across States and Union Territories with the approval of the Commission. The Commission also clarified that the letter sent to the Cabinet Secretary was related to the working of an officer on deputation to the ECI and not related to any policy matter of the poll body. (ANI)

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