Nityanand Rai: Congress ran 10 SIR drives, now opposes same process
Synopsis
Union MoS Home Nityanand Rai turned the Congress's SIR attack back on the party itself — pointing out that 10 of the 12 such electoral roll overhauls in Indian history happened under Congress rule. With roughly 13 crore names already removed in the current exercise, the battle over voter lists is fast becoming one of the sharpest political flashpoints ahead of upcoming state elections.
Key Takeaways
Union MoS Home Nityanand Rai said 10 of 12 SIR exercises were conducted under Congress-led governments, challenging the party's current opposition.
Approximately 13 crore names have been removed in the ongoing SIR drive: 6.3 crore migrants, 3 crore absent voters, 2.8 crore deceased, and 1 crore duplicates.
The Supreme Court has recognised SIR as a statutory exercise under the Representation of the People Act, 1950 .
Rai alleged Congress suffered 56 Assembly election defeats between 2014 and 2025 , many before SIR began.
He made the remarks at the BJP office in Surat as part of the 'Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy' campaign on 5 November 2026 .
Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai on Thursday, 5 November 2026, charged the Congress with hypocrisy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, pointing out that 10 of the 12 such exercises carried out since Independence were conducted under Congress-led governments — yet the party is now rallying against the same procedure.
Key Allegations at Surat Press Conference
Speaking at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) office in Surat as part of the party's 'Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy' campaign, Rai said the Constitution and the Representation of the People Act, 1950, explicitly empower the Election Commission of India (ECI) to review and revise voter lists. He added that the Supreme Court has also recognised the SIR exercise as a statutory process.
'The objective of SIR is not to remove the names of any eligible voters, but to ensure that the names of genuine and eligible Indian citizens are included in the electoral rolls,' Rai said. He questioned why the Congress was, in his words, keen to retain the names of infiltrators on voter lists.
Scale of the Current SIR Exercise
Rai cited figures from the draft electoral rolls prepared under the ongoing SIR, saying approximately 13 crore names had been removed so far. He broke down the deletions as follows: around 6.3 crore voters who had migrated, 3 crore who were listed as absent, 2.8 crore deceased voters, and 1 crore duplicate entries.
He stressed that prescribed procedures — including issuing notices and giving individuals an opportunity to present their cases — were followed before any name was removed from the rolls.
Congress's Electoral Record and Political Attacks
Rai also trained his sights on the Congress's broader political record, alleging that the party had suffered 56 Assembly election defeats between 2014 and 2025, and had lost several of those contests even before the SIR process began — undercutting, in his view, any claim that the revision exercise was responsible for opposition losses.
He referenced reported remarks by senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who, according to Rai, had described the deletion of names from electoral rolls as a routine process. 'The Congress, however, was turning the exercise into a political issue rather than accepting its electoral setbacks,' Rai alleged.
Notably, he also accused the Congress of imposing the Emergency and 'strangling democracy', contrasting that record with its current claim of defending democratic institutions. He criticised Opposition lawmakers for boycotting parliamentary proceedings and holding mock Parliament sessions instead.
What Rai Says Is at Stake
The minister argued that allowing foreign nationals to remain on voter lists could impinge on the rights of Indian citizens, harm employment prospects for local youth, and strain national resources. He also alleged that the INDIA bloc was attempting to erode public trust in democratic institutions.
Rai appealed to the Congress and other Opposition parties to stop spreading what he called misinformation about SIR and to repose faith in constitutional processes. He concluded by asserting that India was strengthening its global standing and expanding infrastructure and employment under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.
Point of View
But it sidesteps the more substantive concern: the sheer scale of the current exercise. Removing 13 crore names, even if individually justifiable, is unprecedented in a single revision cycle and warrants transparent, independent audit rather than partisan one-upmanship. The Congress's credibility gap on this issue is real, but that does not resolve questions about due process at scale. The debate would be better served if both sides engaged with the ECI's methodology rather than trading history lessons.
NationPress
5 Nov 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls?
SIR is a statutory process authorised under the Representation of the People Act, 1950, by which the Election Commission of India reviews and updates voter lists — adding eligible new voters and removing ineligible, deceased, duplicate, or migrated entries. The Supreme Court has recognised it as a lawful exercise.
Why is Nityanand Rai defending the SIR exercise?
Rai argues that the Congress has no principled basis to oppose SIR because 10 of the 12 such drives in Indian history were conducted under Congress-led governments. He made the remarks at a BJP press conference in Surat on 5 November 2026 as part of the party's 'Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy' campaign.
How many names have been removed in the current SIR exercise?
According to Rai, approximately 13 crore names have been removed in the draft electoral rolls prepared under the ongoing SIR. These comprise around 6.3 crore migrants, 3 crore absent voters, 2.8 crore deceased voters, and 1 crore duplicate entries.
What procedure is followed before deleting a name from the voter list?
Rai stated that notices are issued and the concerned individual is given an opportunity to present their case before their name is removed. He said these prescribed procedures were followed in the current SIR exercise.
What is the Congress's position on the SIR exercise?
The Congress and other Opposition parties have opposed the ongoing SIR, raising concerns about large-scale deletions from voter rolls. Rai alleges this opposition is politically motivated and points to the party's 56 Assembly election defeats between 2014 and 2025 as evidence that its losses predate the current exercise.
