Surat, Nov 5 — The Congress did not object when 10 of the 12 Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercises of electoral rolls were conducted under Congress-led governments but is now opposing the same process, Union Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai, said on Thursday.
Addressing a press conference at the Surat city BJP office as part of the party's ‘Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy’ campaign, Rai accused the Congress and other Opposition parties of misleading people over SIR instead of accepting their repeated electoral defeats.
He said the Constitution and the Representation of the People Act, 1950, empowered the Election Commission to review and revise electoral rolls. The Supreme Court had also recognised the SIR exercise as statutory.
“The objective of SIR is not to remove the names of any eligible voters, but to ensure that the names of genuine and eligible Indian citizens are included in the electoral rolls,” Rai said, adding that only citizens legally entitled to vote should figure in the country's voter lists.
He questioned the Congress's opposition to the exercise and asked why the party was so keen to retain the names of infiltrators in electoral rolls.
He alleged that allowing foreign nationals to remain on voter lists could affect the rights of Indian citizens, employment opportunities for local youth and the country's resources.
"Prescribed procedures were followed before deleting names, including issuing notices and providing the concerned individuals an opportunity to present their cases," he asserted.
Referring to the draft electoral rolls prepared under SIR, he said approximately 13 crore names had been removed so far. These included around 6.3 crore voters who had migrated, three crore who were absent, 2.8 crore deceased voters and one crore duplicate entries.
“Should the names of ineligible and duplicate voters be retained in a democracy?” he asked, adding that accuracy and transparency in electoral rolls were essential for the credibility of the democratic system.
Targeting the Congress over its record, Rai said the party, which had imposed the Emergency and “strangled democracy”, is now claiming to protect democratic institutions.
He also criticised the party for staying away from parliamentary proceedings and holding mock Parliament sessions, saying "Parliament is the highest forum for framing laws and policies for citizens' welfare".
"The Congress had suffered defeats in 56 Assembly elections between 2014 and 2025 and had lost several elections even before the SIR exercise began," he said.
Referring to senior advocate Kapil Sibal's reported remarks in Delhi, Rai said even he had described the deletion of names as a routine process. "The Congress, however, was turning the exercise into a political issue rather than accepting its electoral setbacks," he alleged.
Rai also accused the Congress and the INDIA bloc of attempting to create distrust towards democratic institutions and question the country's capabilities.
"India is making progress under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership and its standing on the global stage was increasing," he noted.
He added that employment opportunities and infrastructure were being expanded and India was establishing a stronger identity in the defence sector.
“For the Congress, family, power and corruption have remained paramount, whereas under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, the nation and its people come first,” Rai said.
He appealed to the Congress and other Opposition parties to stop spreading misinformation over SIR and express faith in constitutional processes.