New Delhi: Congress leader and former Union minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday stepped up the party’s attack on the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, questioning the deletion of 13.3 crore names and raising concerns over the process followed to remove voters.
Chidambaram’s remarks came a day after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, suspension of the SIR exercise and restoration of the 13.3 crore names that the party says were removed from electoral rolls.
In a post on X, Chidambaram said the CWC had identified what it considered flaws in the SIR and listed three demands.
“Yesterday, the CWC identified the various flaws in the S.I.R. and rightly made three demands
Demands: CEC must resign; SIR must be suspended; 13,30,00,000 names removed from the electoral rolls must be restored”
He also criticised the BJP’s response to the CWC resolution and its defence of the Chief Election Commissioner.
“The BJP’s response to the CWC resolution and its defence of the CEC are pathetic”
Yesterday, the CWC identified the various flaws in the S.I.R. and rightly made three demands
Demands: CEC must resign; SIR must be suspended; 13,30,00,000 names removed from the electoral rolls must be restored
The BJP's response to the CWC resolution and its defence of the…
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) September 30, 2026
Chidambaram Questions Grounds For Voter Deletions
Chidambaram said the removal of genuinely ineligible or dead voters was not the issue and argued that such deletions could be handled through the regular electoral-roll revision process.
“Nobody wants dead voters to remain on the rolls. They can be removed through the usual annual revision on January 1”
He then questioned the basis on which other names were removed during the SIR exercise.
“But what about names removed on the specious ground of: unable to fill the Form 6; ‘not found in the address’; logical discrepancy?”
Chidambaram further asked the BJP to explain the scale of deletions claimed by the Congress.
“BJP must explain how 14% of the ADULT population of India has been removed from the rolls in 20 states under SIR?”
The figure of 13.3 crore deletions has been cited by Congress in its criticism of the SIR process, while the Election Commission has maintained that its decisions have full legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.
‘91% Appeals Allowed’ In Bengal
Chidambaram also cited the outcome of appeals against deletions in West Bengal.
“BJP must explain how 91% of the Appeals against removal were allowed by the Judges in West Bengal and the names of victims were restored to the rolls?”
According to an Election Commission RTI response reported by The Indian Express, West Bengal SIR appellate tribunals had disposed of 82,782 appeals, with 75,443 names – around 91 per cent – added back to the electoral rolls.
Chidambaram also raised a question about the decision-making process behind the SIR.
“BJP must answer the question posed by Ms Anjali Bhargava of NCPRI: where is the file in which the decision to conduct SIR was originally taken?”
“There are many more questions. I am sure the entire SIR exercise will unravel in the next few weeks or months,” he said.
Chidambaram Flags 14 EC Disagreements
Speaking to the media, Chidambaram also referred to reports of disagreements within the Election Commission over decisions related to the SIR.
Former Union Minister and Congress leader said, “The Election Commission is totally wrong. The SIR process has been doubted by the two Election Commissioners, and they have pointed out that there were 14 disagreements between the Election Commissioners and the Chief Election Commissioner…”
The remarks refer to a report that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected on record at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders related to the SIR, which they said were issued without their knowledge or recommendation.
The Election Commission has rejected the suggestion that such differences undermine its decisions, saying differing views and observations are a normal part of institutional deliberations and that its orders have full legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.
The controversy comes as the INDIA bloc discusses a joint action plan over the SIR issue, with opposition parties considering coordinated agitation and a fresh move seeking the removal of the CEC.