"EC has no legal right to conduct SIR": Congress MP Manish Tewari

New Delhi [India], December 9 (ANI): A heated debate on electoral reforms is on in Parliament on Tuesday, with the opposition led by Congress MP Manish Tewari launching a sharp attack on the Election Commission of India (ECI), questioning both its neutrality and its legal authority to conduct the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists.
Addressing the House, Tewari said, "It is unfortunate that many members here are having to raise questions on the neutrality of the Election Commission of India."
Tewari suggested that the first reform should be an amendment to the law concerning the selection of EC members. "The first reform that should happen is an amendment to the law governing the selection of members of the Election Commission. My suggestion is that the LoP Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India should be added to the committee of the Election Commission," he said.
The Congress MP also criticised the ongoing Systematic Internal Reforms (SIR) process in various states.
"SIR is ongoing in many states in the country, but the Election Commission of India has no legal justification to hold SIR," he remarked, questioning the Commission's authority to implement such reforms.
The lower house of Parliament has begun discussions on election reforms, including the SIR exercise initiated by the Election Commission of India (ECI) across various states.
The opposition parties have been demanding a debate on SIR for months, with Congress alleging discrepancies in the voter list.
Congress MP and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Lok Sabha is likely to intervene on the discussion. The LoP has been a vocal critic of SIR, alleging that the government is using the process to delete genuine voters.
KC Venugopal is one of the senior Congress leaders participating in the debate on election reforms. Others include Manish Tewari, Varsha Gaikwad, Mohammed Javaid, Ujjwal Raman Singh, Isa Khan, Ravi Mallu, Imran Masood, Gowaal Padavi, and S Jyotimani.
In Rajya Sabha, Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to initiate the discussion on SIR.
A total of 10 hours has been earmarked for the entire discussion in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India will conduct the second phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 12 states and Union Territories, with the final voter list scheduled to be published on February 21, 2026.
The first phase of SIR was completed in Bihar in September ahead of the Assembly elections. The exercise covers Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.
According to the ECI, printing and training for the exercise were conducted from October 28 to November 3, followed by an Enumeration Phase from November 4 to December 4.
Draft Electoral Rolls will be published on December 9, followed by a claims and objections period from December 9 to January 8, 2026.
The Notice Phase (for hearing and verification) will take place between December 9 and January 31, 2026, with publication of Final Electoral Rolls on February 7, 2026. (ANI)