Anti-SIR convention urges Karnataka govt to safeguard voters’ rights

Bengaluru: A broad coalition of organisations and political parties in Karnataka on Thursday issued a ‘Karnataka Declaration’ opposing the proposed Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, terming it a ‘systematic assault on democracy’ and warned of statewide protests if implemented without major safeguards.

The declaration was adopted at an anti-SIR convention held at the Freedom Park in Bengaluru, attended by members of various people’s movements, civil society groups and opposition parties.

The convention described the SIR process as a “major weapon in a conspiracy designed by anti-constitutional forces to destroy the democratic system,” and alleged the exercise could be misused to disenfranchise large sections of voters under the guise of electoral roll purification.

Citing past experiences in Bihar and Bengal, the declaration claimed that the strategy had already influenced electoral outcomes elsewhere. It alleged that the BJP had ‘captured Bihar’ using similar tactics, and criticised opposition parties for failing to sustain protests over alleged ‘vote theft’ after the elections.

The declaration stated that Karnataka’s people stood with West Bengal as 91 lakh names had been removed from voter lists in West Bengal, 34 lakh affected individuals had filed appeals, but authorities had proceeded with the elections without resolving them.

The SIR process has affected 65 million voters across 13 states, and Karnataka could be included in the next phase. But the exercise should be halted until a comprehensive review is held and all related court proceedings are concluded, demanded the convention, also urging the Karnataka government to adopt a six-point strategy to safeguard voters’ rights: Increase the SIR process period from three to six months, and similarly extend the appeal window by approaching the judiciary, setting up voter assistance centres, to direct officials to issue residence and identity certificates swiftly, conduct an independent revision of electoral rolls through the State Election Commission instead of relying solely on centrally prepared lists, and mandate gram sabha and ward sabha meetings to publicly review draft voter lists before finalisation.