Congress's Jairam Ramesh alleged the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is a 'Shah-instigated' mass removal of voters. He claimed millions were deleted and called the process a 'brazen assault on our Constitution'.

Congress General Secretary in-charge of Communications Jairam Ramesh on Sunday alleged that the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is a "Shah-instigated removal of voters on a massive scale" and an "assault of the Constitution" aimed at disenfranchising vulnerable citizens.

In an X post, Ramesh said, “SIR is actually a Shah-instigated removal of voters on a massive scale. Here is a statement on this brazen assault on our Constitution itself.” SIR is actually a Shah Instigated Removal of voters on a massive scale. Here is a statement on this brazen assault on our Constitution itself. pic.twitter.com/45Jt4xqZ7D — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) September 20, 2026

Ramesh Details 'Massive' Voter Deletion

In an official statement, the senior Congress leader alleged that approximately 7.8 crore voters were removed from the rolls, reflecting a 13 per cent deletion rate compared to pre-SIR baseline numbers during Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the SIR process. "The Election Commission of India (ECI) began Phase-1 of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process of the electoral rolls in June 2025 in Bihar. Subsequently, Phase-2 was launched in November 2025 across 9 states and 3 Union Territories (UTs). In Phase-1 and Phase-2, names of 7.8 crore voters were deleted. The deletion rate as a proportion of the pre-SIR electoral roll works out to 13 per cent," the statement said.

Further, Ramesh highlighted data from Phase-3. According to the data shared by the Congress leader in the statement, out of a total of 36.06 crore, the names of 6.18 crore voters have been deleted. The deletion rate works out to over 17 per cent. An additional 5.43 crore voters have been issued notices demanding additional documentation to have their names retained on the electoral roll. The risk of deletion rate works to another 15 per cent, the statement added.

Ramesh questioned how there could still be such a large number of voters requiring verification after the deletion of a substantial number of names from the rolls. "This is an unusually high proportion that reflects structural flaws in the entire SIR process. After such a large round of deletion, how can there still be so many additional voters who need to "be verified"?" he asked in the statement.

State-Wise Deletion Risks

According to the statement, combined deletions and verification risks affect approximately 32 per cent of total voters in these areas. "The state-wise picture on this measure is as follows: Delhi (53.73 per cent), Chandigarh (52.58 per cent), Jharkhand (39.57 per cent), Uttarakhand (35.71 per cent), Meghalaya (35.36 per cent), Maharashtra (33.88 per cent), Telangana (48.90 per cent), Karnataka (27.6 per cent), Haryana (37.5 per cent), Odisha (23.67 per cent), Andhra Pradesh (21.17 per cent) and Punjab (15.23 per cent)," the statement said.

"SIR is actually a massive Shah-instigated removal of voters. It is an assault on our Constitution," he added.

Lack of Transparency Alleged

Ramesh also highlighted that lists of voters facing the risk of deletion in Karnataka, Telangana and Jharkhand had been made publicly available so that voters could check whether their names were included. "Delhi made this list available publicly only on September 19th 2026, and that too only in response to public pressure. Other BJP-ruled states as well as Punjab have not done so till now," he said. (ANI)

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