Priyanka Gandhi escalates attack over SIR controversy
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday, September 25, stepped up her criticism of the BJP amid the continuing controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, arguing that evidence supporting the Opposition’s concerns is already in the public domain.
Speaking to reporters in Wayanad, Kerala, Priyanka rejected the BJP’s response to Congress allegations as a “stale and weak story” and referred to material presented by her brother and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi at several press conferences.
She said:
“There are facts, there is evidence. It is there for the whole country to see.”
Priyanka then alleged that 13 crore voter names had been deleted, saying the BJP should stop making “lame excuses.”
The allegation is politically contested. While Priyanka presented the figure as evidence of wrongdoing, the fact that names were excluded from draft rolls does not by itself establish illegal deletion, partisan manipulation or disenfranchisement.
Where does the ‘13 crore’ figure come from?
The figure cited by Priyanka has a factual basis in reporting about the SIR exercise, but its meaning requires context.
The Indian Express reported earlier this month that an estimated 13.37 crore names had been left out of draft electoral rolls prepared during the Election Commission’s SIR across the country over the previous year.
That number, however, should not automatically be described as 13.37 crore people being permanently stripped of their voting rights.
Under the SIR framework, electors may not appear in a draft roll for reasons including being absent, shifted, deceased or duplicate, and the process includes mechanisms for publication of such lists as well as claims and objections before final electoral rolls are settled. The Election Commission’s own SIR instructions specifically provide for these categories and require lists of people not included in draft rolls, along with probable reasons, to be made accessible.
Therefore, the accurate distinction is:
13.37 crore names reportedly being excluded from draft rolls is a documented figure; Priyanka Gandhi’s assertion that this demonstrates electoral manipulation is a political allegation that has not been established merely by that number.
‘BJP should stop making lame excuses’: Priyanka
Priyanka argued that Rahul Gandhi had already presented evidence at multiple press conferences and said the BJP’s response could no longer dismiss the controversy as an Opposition narrative.
She said the evidence had been placed before the country and added:
“This is a lame excuse, and the BJP should stop making lame excuses.”
She went further, alleging that if BJP leaders were influencing the Election Commission to interfere with elections, such conduct would amount to an “act of treason.”
That accusation is Priyanka Gandhi’s allegation, not an established finding against either the BJP or Election Commission.
Priyanka also alleges elections have been ‘rigged’
The Congress leader also questioned how long, in her view, electoral manipulation had been taking place.
According to PTI and ANI reports, Priyanka asked how many years elections had allegedly been “rigged” and argued that those responsible should take ownership if interference had occurred.
No judicial or other authoritative finding cited in the reports establishes Priyanka’s broader allegation that the BJP has been rigging elections for years. It should therefore be treated as a political claim rather than a confirmed fact.
Election Commission rejects claims of institutional disagreement
The controversy has also focused on reports concerning discussions within the Election Commission itself.
Recent reporting said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on multiple occasions concerning electoral-roll procedures and related decisions.
The Election Commission, however, has rejected the suggestion that those internal exchanges amounted to a split within the constitutional body. According to reports, the ECI has maintained that the concerns were part of its internal deliberative process and that final SIR decisions were taken unanimously.
The Commission’s official SIR instructions state that the exercise was ordered using its powers under Article 324 of the Constitution, Section 21 and other applicable provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
Congress turns focus toward CEC Gyanesh Kumar
Priyanka’s latest remarks come amid a wider Congress offensive against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
A day earlier, she said that if illegal manipulation of electoral rolls were established, officials responsible should face criminal prosecution. She argued that constitutional office should not protect anyone found to have committed illegal acts.
Again, this is the Congress leader’s position. The available reporting does not establish that Gyanesh Kumar committed a criminal offence.
The Congress and other Opposition parties have increasingly focused their criticism on the CEC over the SIR process, while the Election Commission has defended its procedures and rejected allegations that its actions amount to electoral manipulation.
Congress Working Committee to decide next steps
Asked whether Congress would launch further protests over the controversy, Priyanka said the party’s next course of action would be discussed at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting.
She indicated that the CWC would decide how the party proceeds on the Election Commission issue.
This leaves open the possibility of further political or institutional action, but no specific new step should be treated as confirmed until formally announced by the party.
What the SIR dispute is really about
At the centre of the controversy are two separate questions that should not be conflated.
The first is factual: how many names were excluded from draft electoral rolls, why were they excluded, and how many were subsequently restored through claims and objections?
The second is political and legal: whether any exclusions were improper, discriminatory or deliberately engineered to affect electoral outcomes.
The approximately 13.37 crore figure reported by The Indian Express relates to names excluded from draft rolls across the SIR exercise. The Election Commission’s rules explicitly contemplate non-inclusion for reasons such as death, duplication, absence or relocation and provide procedures around publication and correction.
Priyanka Gandhi and Congress argue that the scale and circumstances point toward serious irregularities. The Election Commission maintains that the revision has been conducted within the applicable legal framework. Determining whether particular deletions were unlawful requires evidence about individual cases and the procedures followed, rather than the aggregate number alone.
Sources
Primary reporting: ANI/The Economic Times and PTI reporting on Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s September 25 remarks in Wayanad.
SIR data and context: The Indian Express reported that an estimated 13.37 crore names had been excluded from draft electoral rolls during the SIR exercise over the preceding year.
Official source: Election Commission of India’s SIR directions, including the legal basis for the exercise and procedures concerning electors not included in draft rolls.
