Revanth seeks 4-week extension of T’gana SIR

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy of Telangana has requested a four-week extension to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process for updating the state's electoral rolls. The ECI is being urged to delay the schedule due to concerns over a significant number of potential deletions of voters during verification. The SIR has reached a critical phase, with 7.3 million entries, or 21.7% of Telangana's 33.8 million voters, categorized as absent, shifted, dead or duplicate (ASDD). Of these, 4.5 million are marked as permanently shifted.

Reddy highlighted that of the 26.5 million digitized enumeration forms, 6.05 million had anomalies flagged, and another 3.2 million lacked a link to the previous electoral roll. These issues led to 9.28 million voters facing the need to respond to notices. The chief minister pointed out structural shortcomings in the verification process, including inadequate assistance for genuine voters who have shifted residence and the exclusion of "shifted" voters from the statutory notice mechanism.

Moreover, the burden of verification was disproportionately high in Hyderabad, Medchal-Malkajgiri, and Rangareddy districts, which together account for a majority of ASDD entries and verification notices.

Reddy proposed six measures to the ECI, including an extension of the claims and objections period by four weeks beyond the September 16 deadline, twice holding public readings of draft electoral rolls in gram sabhas and ward committee meetings, and allowing voters three to four weeks to respond to notices instead of one week. The chief minister also suggested opening helpdesks, particularly in urban districts, to assist voters with notices and documentation, and providing a wider, clearly defined list of admissible documents, including those obtainable at the mandal level.

He advocated for strengthening the capacity of Electoral Registration Officers by appointing additional EROs and allowing for decentralized hearings, especially in the districts of Hyderabad, Medchal-Malkajgiri, and Rangareddy. The Telangana government expressed willingness to provide logistical support, such as helpdesks, mobilization for gram sabhas and ward committee meetings, and voter awareness activities.