Escalating his criticism of the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of the voter list, Stalin called it “flawed, confusing, and dangerous,” alleging it was part of a conspiracy to remove genuine voters.
File Photo: IANS
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK chief MK Stalin slammed the Centre over the SIR exercise, stating that the BJP is “getting ready” to misuse the Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax Department, and Election Commission against the DMK government.
“Let them come – we are ready to face them. The ground is ours,” Stalin said.
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Escalating his criticism of the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of the voter list, Stalin called it “flawed, confusing, and dangerous,” alleging it was part of a conspiracy to remove genuine voters.
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After an all-party meeting, Stalin said the DMK had already lodged a case in the Supreme Court against the SIR process.
He clarified that the party was not against the overhaul of the voter lists but against the way the process was being implemented, which is “hurriedly, confusingly, and with too many mistakes.”
“A correct voter list is the base of a fair election,” he said, adding that the new SIR forms were so complicated that “even educated people will find them confusing.”
highlighted that the forms ask for too many personal and “relative” details without clear explanation.
Stalin alleged that many Block-Level Officers (BLOs) were not visiting homes properly, had limited forms, and were issuing only about 30 forms a day.
He questioned how officials could distribute and process nearly three lakh forms before the December 7 draft roll deadline. “If they rush it like this, many genuine voters may be removed,” he warned.
He further said there was confusion about whether photographs were mandatory on the forms and cautioned that even minor mistakes could result in names being deleted. “The first mistake itself can cost a person their vote,” he said.
Supporting him, Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin claimed the Union Government brought the SIR “to stop our victory,” calling it a “BJP conspiracy” to delete votes of minorities and marginalised groups. “Around 65 lakh voters were removed in Bihar. Now they are trying to do the same here,” he alleged, urging people to stay alert until the SIR process ends.
Meanwhile, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, the general secretary of the AIADMK and Leader of the Opposition, made serious allegations against the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, claiming that the state has turned into a “jungle raaj” under Chief Minister MK Stalin.
EPS alleged a sharp rise in murders and demanded the immediate appointment of a full-time Director General of Police (DGP). Condemning what he called a “crime wave” in Tamil Nadu, he pointed out that a contempt plea is pending in the Supreme Court over the state’s failure to appoint a DGP.
Chief Minister Stalin dismissed the allegations as “completely fake” and announced a statewide protest on November 11 against the SIR process.
Palaniswami, meanwhile, supported the SIR process, saying it was necessary to eliminate fake and duplicate voters.
DMK is opposing the SIR because it won local body elections using bogus votes. During elections, even the dead seem to come alive to vote. The SIR exercise is important to remove fake entries and ensure all genuine voters are included,” Palaniswami said.
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