Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and MLA Sunny Joseph on Monday slammed the State Election Commission for what he termed a “politically motivated and undemocratic” move to conduct the Summary Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across Kerala and 11 other regions, including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The Congress leader alleged that the decision to implement the SIR without prior consultation or debate was ill-timed, coming just weeks before local body elections in Kerala. “The decision has been taken in haste and with ulterior motives. Conducting SIR in the midst of election preparations is senseless,” Joseph said, demanding that the Election Commission withdraw its directive immediately.
Joseph reminded that the Congress had earlier requested a deferral of the SIR exercise until after the completion of local polls. According to him, even the Chief Electoral Officer of Kerala had written to the Central Election Commission supporting the Opposition’s concerns and recommending a postponement, a suggestion that was ultimately ignored.
Calling the move a “denial of citizens’ democratic rights,” he argued that the Congress only sought to ensure the removal of ineligible names and inclusion of eligible voters, not a complete overhaul of the voter rolls. “The decision to base the revision on the 2002 voters’ list defies logic,” Joseph said, questioning why voters registered in the past 23 years must go through re-verification.
He warned that the hurried process could lead to widespread confusion and disenfranchisement among citizens. “Under what criteria or standards has this harsh instruction been issued?” he asked, asserting that the Congress would oppose any attempt to tamper with the democratic process for political gain.
Meanwhile, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, speaking in Delhi earlier in the day, confirmed that the Summary Intensive Revision will be implemented in 12 states and Union Territories, including Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal, as well as the UTs of Puducherry, Lakshadweep, and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
The first phase of the nationwide revision begins Tuesday, with the existing voter lists in these regions frozen as of Monday. The draft rolls are scheduled for publication on December 9, while the voter list revision process will take place from November 4 to December 4. Final electoral rolls will be released on February 7, 2025.
For the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the revision exercise will be crucial in ensuring transparent and inclusive representation ahead of the 2025 local council and panchayat elections. The archipelago, with its scattered island communities and limited connectivity, often faces logistical hurdles in voter registration drives, a challenge that the ongoing SIR process aims to address through digital verification and ground-level enumeration.
However, opposition leaders have voiced concern that the exercise’s timing could disrupt preparations for upcoming elections. With Assembly polls in several states, including Kerala, due in April–May 2025, the controversy underscores broader questions over election readiness and transparency in India’s democratic framework.
