Karnataka Home Minister Accuses BJP and RSS of Voter Rights Deprivation

The political battle over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has intensified in Karnataka, with Home Minister Priyank Kharge accusing the BJP and RSS of attempting to deprive Scheduled Caste and minority voters of their voting rights. Kharge alleged that the electoral-roll revision was being conducted with an ulterior motive and claimed that the Election Commission was not taking adequate action despite being aware of the developments. Taking a swipe at the BJP and RSS , he said the two organisations were acting like representatives of the Election Commission while raising questions over the transparency of the SIR exercise. The Home Minister said the Karnataka government had extended all necessary institutional support to the election authorities. According to him, the government had also undertaken publicity campaigns to inform citizens about the electoral-roll revision and the procedures involved. However, Kharge alleged that the process was still being misused. He claimed that more than 1.08 crore voters had been excluded from the electoral rolls and that 43.8 lakh voters currently appearing on the rolls had received notices over alleged “logical discrepancies”. Kharge questioned the BJP’s position on voter-list cleansing and alleged that party leaders were using the SIR process to facilitate mass deletions. “The BJP leaders are now deleting names collectively under the same pretext. Is this what the BJP calls purification?” Kharge questioned. He went on to give the exercise a political label, saying it should not be called a Special Intensive Revision. “This is not a Special Intensive Revision; this is an RSS-run ‘Sangh Intensive Revision’,” he alleged. Kharge further questioned why Scheduled Caste and minority voters were allegedly being singled out during the process. “Why are the votes of Scheduled Castes and minorities being deleted?” he asked. The allegations come amid a wider political dispute between the Congress and BJP over SIR and Form 7 applications. While Congress leaders have raised concerns over possible exclusion of eligible voters, the BJP has rejected the charges and sought evidence to support claims of large-scale voter deletion. The Election Commission’s verification and revision process is expected to remain a major political issue in Karnataka as the exercise progresses.