Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, Sep 23: Election Commission sources on Wednesday rejected a media report claiming an internal rift within the poll panel over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), saying all decisions, including those related to the SIR, were taken unanimously with the approval of all three Election Commissioners.
“All decisions of the Election Commission of India, including SIR, have been unanimous and with the approval of both the Election Commissioners and the Chief Election Commissioner,” the sources said.
The clarification came after The Indian Express reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders which they said were taken without their knowledge. The report said the objections covered the SIR, changes to Form 6, addition and deletion of voters, appeals concerning electoral-roll decisions and access to electoral-roll data.
According to the report, Sandhu and Joshi had also raised concerns over changes made to Form 6, the statutory application used by new voters for registration. The report said both commissioners had questioned whether the changes could be made without amendments to the relevant electoral rules.
The report further said the objections were brought to the notice of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The developments triggered reactions from several opposition parties, with leaders questioning the functioning of the Election Commission and raising concerns over the SIR process.
Congress, Samajwadi Party, DMK, AAP, Shiv Sena (UBT) and CPI(M) leaders criticised the reported objections and sought greater accountability from the poll panel.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav described the reported objections as serious and urged the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of the matter. Other opposition leaders, including Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, DMK spokesperson TKS Elangovan, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj and CPI(M) MP John Brittas, also commented on the report.
The Election Commission's clarification, however, maintained that decisions of the three-member poll panel, including those concerning the SIR, were taken unanimously.