Political and economic analyst Parakala Prabhakar on Sunday raised serious concerns over the proposed Special Integrated Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, soon to be launched in Telangana, and described it as a “bloodless massacre” and a threat to democratic rights.
Speaking at an awareness seminar on ‘SIR in Telangana’, organised by Constitution Protection Forum here at Sundarayya Vignana Kendram, he questioned the need for a fresh revision when the annual Special Summary Revision (SSR), conducted by the Election Commission of India between October and January, is already in practice. He criticised the ECI’s justification of irregularities in SSR, asking how it could function effectively if it lacked confidence in its own processes.
He also alleged a lack of transparency, stating that queries filed under the Right to Information Act regarding flaws in SSR and the basis for introducing SIR remained unanswered. He further questioned the Commission’s claim that the exercise was not new, pointing out that earlier revisions, such as in 2002, did not demand extensive documentation.
Citing Bihar as an example, Mr. Prabhakar said the Commission claimed to have removed 63 lakh voters but failed to clarify the identities of those deleted. Even after directions from the Supreme Court of India, the data released lacked clarity, with no category indicating “infiltrators” as its lists only showed classifications such as “shifted,” “absent,” and “deceased.” Many individuals marked as deleted were still alive, he said.
