Mangaluru: Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Minister and Dakshina Kannada district in-charge minister U T Khader has warned that protests against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across the country will spread from the Mangaluru Assembly constituency.

Khader was speaking at the concluding programme of an overnight protest organised by the Youth Congress Committee of the Mangaluru Assembly constituency at the central bus stand in Thokkottu on Saturday morning. The protest began on Friday night, demanding the withdrawal of SIR and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

The protesters said the agitation was aimed at defending democracy and protecting the voting rights of eligible citizens. The programme concluded with the burning of an effigy of Gyanesh Kumar.

Khader questions Election Commission’s functioning

Addressing the gathering, Khader questioned why the Union government was keen on allowing Gyanesh Kumar to continue as Chief Election Commissioner despite what he described as a lack of confidence in him among the other two members of the Election Commission.

He alleged that the SIR exercise was being used to target ordinary citizens, particularly Congress voters, and remove their names from electoral rolls. He described such actions, if carried out, as detrimental to democracy and tantamount to the murder of the Constitution.

Khader also referred to letters that he said members of the Election Commission had written to Gyanesh Kumar on 12 occasions, raising concerns about the deletion of voters’ names during elections.

Referring to the correspondence and a press conference held by the members, he questioned why demands for the Chief Election Commissioner’s resignation should be considered inappropriate.

The minister argued that questions raised about the electoral revision process needed to be answered transparently. He maintained that citizens and political parties had a legitimate interest in ensuring that the electoral process remained fair and that eligible voters were not deprived of their rights.

His remarks came amid the Congress party’s opposition to aspects of the SIR exercise and its demands for greater transparency in the handling of voter records.

Congress says it supports verification of electoral rolls

Khader clarified that the Congress had never opposed the SIR process itself and had supported the principle of revising electoral rolls.

He said the party’s position was that every eligible citizen must retain the right to vote and that the revision exercise should ensure the accuracy of electoral records without unfairly excluding genuine voters.

However, he expressed concern over applications seeking the deletion of names even after lists of genuine and eligible voters had been published.

According to Khader, the party had raised questions about how individuals could submit as many as 100 applications each seeking the deletion of voters’ names.

He said the applications reportedly contained computer-printed details, including the phone numbers, Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) numbers, photographs and Aadhaar numbers of the individuals concerned.

Khader questioned how applicants had obtained such personal information and supporting documents.

“Who provides the data and documents of other voters? Where are these documents printed, and who prints them?” he asked, demanding that the Election Commission disclose the source of the information and explain the process through which the applications had been prepared.

He said the absence of satisfactory answers to these questions had created doubts about the functioning of the Election Commission.

The allegations were raised by Khader during the protest. The claims regarding the applications and the source of the personal information were not independently established in the account of the event.

Concerns over deletion of voters’ names

The minister also alleged that those questioning the electoral revision process were being subjected to investigations and cases that he considered baseless.

He questioned the authority and procedures under which the names of living citizens could be removed from electoral rolls, stressing that eligible voters should not lose their voting rights because of errors or unresolved discrepancies.

The SIR process involves the verification and revision of electoral records. While such exercises are intended to improve the accuracy of voter lists, disputes can arise over documentation, the identification of eligible electors and the handling of objections to individual entries.

Khader’s remarks focused on the need for transparency in the submission and examination of applications seeking the deletion of names. He called for clarity on the source of the data used in such applications and the safeguards available to protect eligible voters.

The Congress has maintained that its opposition concerns the manner in which the revision is being implemented, rather than the principle of ensuring accurate electoral rolls.

The minister’s statements at Thokkottu added to the party’s wider campaign against what it considers irregularities in the exercise.

Overnight protest concludes at Thokkottu

The Youth Congress organised the overnight demonstration to demand the withdrawal of SIR and the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner.

The protest began on Friday night and concluded on Saturday morning with addresses by party leaders and activists. The burning of an effigy of Gyanesh Kumar marked the conclusion of the programme.

Youth Congress state general secretaries Surayya Anjum and C M Rawoof attended the protest, along with Ullal City Mahila Congress president Amitha Ashwin Bandikote and NSUI president Shahil.

Other participants included Rafiq Ambalamogaru, Mustafa Harekal, C M Abdul Sattar, Abu Sameer Pajeeru, Ullal Block Congress general secretary Mansoor Manchila, Vaibhav Talapady, Abdul Shakeel, Nasir Samanige, Safwan Kerebail, Muralidhar Shetty Morla and Prakash Pinto.

Mangaluru Assembly constituency Youth Congress president Nawaz Naringana welcomed the gathering, while former Ira gram panchayat president Abdul Razak Kukkaje proposed the vote of thanks.

The organisers said the protest reflected their opposition to the current handling of SIR and their demand for safeguards to protect eligible voters.

Call for transparency in electoral revision

The Thokkottu protest brought attention to the political dispute surrounding SIR, particularly concerns raised by the Congress over applications seeking the deletion of voters’ names and the use of personal information in the process.

Khader’s warning that the agitation could spread from Mangaluru signalled the party’s intention to continue raising the issue beyond the district.

The questions raised at the protest centred on the need to establish how deletion applications were generated, how voter information was obtained and what measures were being taken to prevent eligible citizens from being wrongly removed from electoral rolls.

The allegations remain claims made by the minister and the protesters, and the issues require clarification from the relevant authorities.

The protest concluded with a renewed demand for the withdrawal of SIR and the Chief Election Commissioner’s resignation, placing electoral transparency and the protection of voting rights at the centre of the Congress-led agitation in Thokkottu.