Senior lawyers and civil society members on Monday (September 28, 2026) demanded that the Election Commission roll back the special intensive revision (SIR) of voter lists across the country and restore every elector removed from the rolls as they existed prior to the SIR.
They also demanded the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, failing which proceedings to remove him should commence. He added that the pre-SIR voter lists should be used for upcoming elections. “We want to give a message to the country that, if free and fair polls are under threat, then what remains of democracy?
“Now the time has come that the Supreme Court should scrap all decisions of the ECI, as we know that they are not the decisions of the full Commission,” senior lawyer Kapil Sibal said, referring to the recent expose showing that the other two Election Commissioners had objected to a number of the poll body’s decisions during the conduct of the SIR. The youth and nation must stand together to oppose and make sure that democratic India not only survives but thrives,” he said.
Political activist and psephologist Yogendra Yadav, citing government data, said that at the time of the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the adult population of the country was 99 crore and voter list had 98 crore names. Now, the adult population is 103 crore and the voter list has come down to 88 crore names, he said. ALSO WATCH Inside Tumakuru’s SIR hearings: Voters seek clarity over notices | Ground report The civil society groups demanded the repeal of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023.
An independent and credible inquiry must be conducted on the constitutionality and legality of all decisions taken under CEC Gyanesh Kumar, they said.
