Former Chief Election Commissioner O.P. Rawat on Wednesday, 23 September called the exclusion of eligible voters a 'grave sin', as controversy deepened over the Election Commission of India (ECI)'s conduct of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. His remarks came against the backdrop of a report alleging that two Election Commissioners had formally objected to several decisions taken by the poll panel, reportedly without their knowledge — a claim the ECI has denied.

What Rawat Said

Speaking to reporters in Bhopal, Rawat said the best course of action would be for all three members of the Commission — the Chief Election Commissioner and the two Election Commissioners — to hold a joint press conference and address the matter transparently. 'There are different opinions about this. The best thing would be for all three of them to sit together and clarify in a press conference what the matter was. If there was dissent, then a decision could not have been taken. Because a decision by the Election Commission can only be taken either by consensus or by a majority vote, and not otherwise,' Rawat said.

He acknowledged, however, that the SIR process had been plagued by errors from the outset. 'Gradually, the Election Commission improved the process and tried to make it smoother,' he said.

The West Bengal Trigger

Rawat pointed specifically to developments in West Bengal, where appellate tribunals reportedly ruled that 93 per cent of voters who had been excluded from electoral rolls were, in fact, eligible and ought to be reinstated. 'These people were deprived of the opportunity to vote. This is a grave sin,' he said, adding that an institution of the ECI's stature should ensure such an outcome never recurs. He called on the Commission to thoroughly review the SIR process.

Notably, the SIR controversy first surfaced in Bihar, where procedural lapses were flagged early on. The process has since drawn criticism from opposition parties and civil society organisations that have questioned the safeguards around voter deletions.

The ECI's Position

The Election Commission, responding on the same day, pushed back against the narrative of internal discord. It stated that every officer within the institution is 'fully authorised' to offer suggestions for improving the electoral system and underlined that several 'unanimous decisions' have been taken by the poll body in recent months.

The Commission added that differing views, observations, and suggestions are a 'normal part of deliberations' within any institution, and clarified that decision-making involves not only the three Election Commissioners but also officials across the organisation.

Why It Matters

The SIR controversy strikes at the heart of electoral integrity in India. If eligible voters are systematically removed from rolls — even inadvertently — the consequences are irreversible once polling concludes. The West Bengal appellate ruling, with its 93 per cent reversal rate on exclusions, raises serious questions about the evidentiary threshold applied during the revision exercise. Critics argue the scale of erroneous deletions points to a structural flaw in the SIR methodology, not just isolated errors. The Election Commission will now face pressure to publish a transparent, public-facing review of the process before it is deployed ahead of any future state or national election.