Chennai: Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on Monday reiterated that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government had opposed the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls right from the outset, warning that the limited time frame prescribed for the exercise would lead to large-scale deletions.
Addressing reporters in Chennai, he said the party’s concerns had now been validated, with an unexpected spike in the number of voters removed from the rolls.
According to him, over 97 lakh voters statewide and nearly 14 lakh voters in Chennai alone have been deleted following the revision, raising serious questions on the adequacy of the verification process and the accuracy of the purge.
He recalled that Chief Minister M.K. Stalin had earlier highlighted the issue of whose votes were removed during a similar SIR exercise in Bihar, and said Tamil Nadu now appeared to be witnessing a comparable trend.
“The scale of deletions was far beyond initial expectations,” Udhayanidhi said, underscoring that the DMK’s opposition was rooted in a concern that such a rushed process could disenfranchise large numbers of citizens.
Udhayanidhi said that during a meeting with DMK district secretaries earlier, detailed instructions were issued on guiding residents to restore names wrongly removed, including those who were missed, left out inadvertently, or had migrated.
He urged voters to proactively check their status on the rolls and added that those excluded could be re-included until January 18, providing a vital window to rectify omissions before elections draw closer.
Earlier in the day, the Deputy Chief Minister inaugurated a newly constructed night shelter for the homeless near Anna Park on the Marina Beach in the Thiruvallikeni–Chepauk constituency.
Built at Rs 86.4 lakh using capital funds of the Greater Chennai Corporation, the facility can accommodate 86 residents.
Kits containing mats, pillows and bedsheets were distributed to the beneficiaries during the inauguration. The shelter, constructed on an area of 2,500 sq ft, is intended to serve homeless persons living along the Marina stretch and earning a livelihood by selling balloons, handicrafts, flowers, cosmetics and other goods.
Equipped with separate sanitation facilities for men and women, lockers, drinking water and uninterrupted electricity, the shelter joins 45 other night shelters already maintained by the Chennai Corporation.
Minister for Municipal Administration and Water Supply K.N. Nehru, elected representatives, and senior civic officials were present at the event.
(IANS)
