"Affront to democracy...we have to fight it": Priyanka Gandhi refutes SIR Phase-2

Malappuram (Kerala) [India], October 29 (ANI): Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday used strong words to express her objection to the announcement of the second phase of Special Intensive Revision of voter list and called it an "affront to democracy" and "only a way to commit fraud" in the elections.
The Congress MP emphasised the need to put up a united front to oppose the SIR.
"We are strongly opposed to it. It's only a way to commit fraud and cheat in elections. We have seen that before. We've seen what they've done in Bihar and how they have implemented the SIR over there. And if that's what they're going to do in every state, it is an affront to democracy, and we have to fight it," the Wayanad MP told reporters here.
Earlier on Tuesday, TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee reiterated that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) was a way to exclude voters from the voting list and deprive them of their voting rights.
He said that if the voting rights of genuine voters are snatched in West Bengal, then one lakh people will gherao the office of the Election Commission of India in New Delhi.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata, Abhishek Banerjee said, "Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar has announced Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in West Bengal in the middle of Chhath festivities. The SIR is not actually revision, but it is a way to exclude voters from the list and deprive them of their voting rights. Earlier, people used to vote to decide the government but now the government is deciding who should vote. When SIR was done in 2002, it took two years. And now in two months they will do it."
The Election Commission of India (ECI) will conduct the second phase of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 12 States and Union Territories, with the final voter list to be published on February 7, 2026, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said on Monday.
According to the Election Commission, printing and training will take place from October 28 to November 3, followed by an Enumeration Phase from November to December 4. The Draft Electoral Rolls will be published on December 9, followed by a claims and objection period from December 9 to January 8, 2026. The Notice Phase (for hearing and verification) will take place between December 9 and January 31, 202, with publication of Final Electoral Rolls on February 7, 2026. (ANI)