SIR weakened democratic participation; Supreme Court order doesn’t address Bengal government grievances: P Chidambaram

Kolkata: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram has said the Supreme Court’s recent order on SIR did not address the grievances raised by the West Bengal government, contending that “specific directions” from the top judiciary were required to make the EC resolve the issues.

Criticising the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal by calling it an exercise that “weakened democratic participation” and one that intends to “alter the electoral balance in the state”, Chidambaram said he looked forward to further directions from the apex court to be issued to the Election Commission.

“The challenge before the Hon'ble Supreme Court was the last effort to introduce transparency and accountability in SIR. An order has been passed by the court to the effect that it will not allow any ‘impediment’ to the SIR process and extended the deadline to complete the process," the former finance minister told PTI in an interview.

"This order does not address the grievances brought to the court by the Government of West Bengal. Specific orders or directions are required to make the EC address those grievances. Whether the Hon'ble Supreme Court will pass further orders, I do not know. I sincerely hope that further orders/directions will be issued to the EC,” he said.

A Supreme Court Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and N V Anjaria had on Monday ordered an extension of the time for objections by a week from February 14 in the West Bengal SIR case, while simultaneously sending a strong message to states that the exercise cannot be obstructed.

The matter is listed to be heard next on February 25.

The order followed an earlier hearing on the matter on petitions filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and others. Banerjee became the first serving CM to argue in the top court, urging it to intervene in the ongoing SIR exercise to “save democracy”, alleging that Bengal was being unfairly targeted and its people bulldozed.

Chidambaram maintained that the issue of electoral roll revision was not merely administrative, but goes to the heart of democratic governance and federal principles.

“It goes to the root of democracy, federalism and the dictum ‘government of the people’. If large numbers of people are disenfranchised, how can it be an election to elect a government of the people? The autonomy of the EC must serve the cause of democracy,” he asserted.

On the conduct of SIR across states, the Congress leader said a clear and consultative template is needed to avoid controversy.

“Of course, there must be a template arrived at after wide consultation with the stakeholders, especially the political parties. The Census exercise, with its questionnaire, methodology and training of enumerators, is a good example to follow,” he said.

Commenting on the ongoing SIR in West Bengal, Chidambaram said his assessment of the exercise was consistent across states.

“My view on SIR in all states is the same. SIR did not have a consensual template; it was hurried, the EC made changes arbitrarily, and it was not a transparent exercise that would win the confidence of people. It weakened democratic participation,” he said.

Asked whether the exercise in West Bengal could alter the electoral balance ahead of the assembly polls, he said, “It was intended to affect the electoral balance. How much it has achieved, I cannot say until the final rolls are published.” Pinpointing the sections of people who were likely to be most impacted by the revision, Chidambaram said, “Obviously, the minorities, the internal migrants and the poor (especially the homeless).” Referring to Banerjee’s allegations that the SIR was faulty and linked to loss of a significant number of lives in Bengal, the Congressman said the EC must take responsibility for the consequences of the exercise.

“The fault lies in that there was no consensual template for conducting SIR. Contrast SIR with the decennial Census conducted by the Census Commission for over a century, and the results are there before you to see. I cannot comment on the alleged loss of lives,” he said.

On the Congress’ announcement that it would contest all 294 assembly seats in West Bengal on its own, Chidambaram said the state leadership was best placed to assess the political situation.

“The Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) knows best about the political situation on the ground. I cannot comment on the final decision taken by the AICC leadership,” he said.

The Congress central leadership had recently said that the party will contest the upcoming West Bengal assembly polls alone, instead of stitching an alliance with the Left parties, like in the previous few elections in the state.