New Delhi, Sep 2026 : Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday intensified his criticism of the Election Commission of India (ECI) amid the ongoing controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, accusing the poll panel and election officials of wrongdoing.
In a post on X, Gandhi described what he termed “vote chori” as a crime against the people and a direct attack on the Constitution. He alleged that the BJP, RSS and Election Commission were responsible for the alleged irregularities and said that “justice will be served.”
Gandhi also shared a video in which he directly addressed the Election Commission and election officials, saying that their actions were wrong. He warned that they would eventually be held accountable for their decisions, using the terms “treason” and “sedition” while reiterating that the time would come when they would be held responsible.
His remarks came after a report by The Indian Express claimed that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on record on 14 occasions over a 10-month period regarding various decisions connected with the poll panel’s functioning and the SIR exercise. The report said the issues included voter additions and deletions, changes to Form 6 and aspects of electoral-roll data management.
The Election Commission, however, rejected the characterization of these observations as formal dissent. Officials said that the two Election Commissioners had raised concerns or made observations on certain matters, which were subsequently considered by the Commission. The ECI maintained that decisions relating to the SIR were taken unanimously and had the approval of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the two Election Commissioners.
The disagreement over the characterization of the commissioners’ interventions has added another dimension to the wider political dispute over the SIR process. Opposition parties have raised concerns about the possibility of eligible voters being excluded during electoral-roll revisions, while the Election Commission has maintained that the exercise is intended to update electoral rolls and identify ineligible, duplicate or otherwise problematic entries.
Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram also stepped up criticism of the poll panel on Wednesday. He called for decisions taken by the Election Commission in recent years to be reviewed by a Parliamentary Committee and demanded that the ongoing SIR exercise be suspended across the country.
The controversy has prompted wider Opposition criticism, with several parties questioning the functioning of the poll panel and seeking greater scrutiny of its decision-making process. The ECI, meanwhile, has maintained that the reported differences did not amount to institutional dissent and that its decisions were taken according to the applicable legal framework.
The latest exchange comes as the SIR exercise remains a major political issue, with its impact on electoral rolls and the safeguards available to voters continuing to draw scrutiny from political parties, civil society groups and the courts.
(Disclaimer :The content of this article is sourced from a news agency and has not been edited by the Mavericknews30 team.)
