Chennai: Tamil Nadu’s political parties on Sunday warned that they would jointly approach the Supreme Court if the Election Commission of India (ECI) fails to suspend the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which they allege could lead to mass voter deletions.
The resolution was adopted at an all-party meeting convened by Chief Minister M. K. Stalin at a hotel in T. Nagar.
The meeting, attended by leaders of over 40 parties, demanded that the Election Commission immediately stop the ongoing SIR process in Tamil Nadu and other states until clear guidelines and sufficient time for verification are ensured.
Invitations had been sent to around 60 parties, though more than 20, including Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) led by actor Vijay, the PMK, and Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK), boycotted the meeting.
Chief Minister Stalin said the meeting was held to protect democracy and people’s voting rights.
Referring to the Bihar example, where Assembly elections are due on November 6 and 11, he alleged that the Election Commission’s special voter-list revision there led to the deletion of lakhs of names, mainly from the minority and marginalised communities.
“What happened in Bihar should not be repeated in Tamil Nadu. The people’s right to vote must never be tampered with,” he declared.
While acknowledging that updating electoral rolls was necessary for fair elections, Stalin said the timing and method of the SIR exercise were deeply questionable.
“Carrying out a full-scale revision just months before the polls is a deliberate move to erase genuine voters under the pretext of cleansing the list,” he said.
The all-party resolution demanded that the Election Commission correct errors in its notification, ensure adherence to Supreme Court guidelines, and conduct voter-list revisions in a transparent manner only after the 2026 Assembly elections.
The meeting underscored that the SIR exercise, in its present form, posed a serious threat to the democratic process.
“If the Commission proceeds without addressing these concerns, we will be left with no choice but to seek judicial intervention,” the resolution stated.
(IANS)
