Tejashwi Yadav Alleges Lack of Transparency in SIR Exercise, Criticizes ECI's Response to Opposition Concerns

By A Staff Reporter

PATNA | Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav on Friday raised serious concerns regarding the recently concluded Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that the Election Commission of India (ECI) conducted the process without ensuring transparency or addressing the apprehensions of opposition parties.

Addressing a press conference, Yadav claimed that the SIR exercise commenced without adequate consultation with political parties, and the Opposition's repeated queries regarding the timing and methodology of the exercise were ignored. “From the start, we have been questioning the process. Our delegation met ECI officials, submitted complaints and suggestions, but they were not taken into consideration,” Yadav said.

He further alleged that the ECI also overlooked recommendations made by the Supreme Court concerning the electoral roll revision process. “We had warned that the names of poor and marginalized voters could be deleted arbitrarily, but the ECI assured us that such deletions would not occur,” he stated.

According to Yadav, despite these assurances, the ECI has now concluded the exercise and is in the process of distributing constituency-wise lists to political parties. “The ECI had promised to share reasons for each deletion, but that has not been done transparently. Just yesterday, a delegation from the Mahagathbandhan alliance met ECI officials again, expressed our reservations, but there was no response from their side,” he added.