Actor-activist Prakash Raj on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, demanded the immediate scrapping of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that the exercise poses a grave threat to citizens' voting rights and amounts to 'an attempt to kill democracy.' Speaking to the media in Thiruvananthapuram, Raj mounted a sharp attack on the Election Commission of India (ECI) and called for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Core Allegations Against the SIR

Raj alleged that the ongoing revision exercise could strip more than 13 crore people across the country of their constitutional right to vote. He warned that the process risked creating 'two categories of citizens — those who have voting rights and those who do not,' a prospect he described as fundamentally unconstitutional.

He also demanded legal accountability for all officials and individuals involved in implementing the SIR process, signalling that legal challenges could follow the public campaign.

What Prakash Raj Said

Drawing on India's constitutional history, Raj placed the controversy in a broader democratic context. 'Now we are realising the conspiracy and the agenda behind SIR,' he said, adding: 'When India attained freedom, it was a new country, and the Constitution was formed. If you remember, the Britishers had suggested that this was a new country with many poor and uneducated people and questioned whether everyone should be given the right to elect governments. They suggested that the right should be given to some higher-class or well-educated people. But the leaders of that time, whether Ambedkar, Nehru or others, said no. This country would give everyone the power to elect their representatives, who would represent their issues — whether they are farmers, Adivasis, Dalits or minorities...'

Raj argued that the right to vote is one of the foundational principles on which democratic India was built, and that the current exercise is actively undermining that principle.

Call to Action and Planned Resistance

The actor-activist appealed to citizens to take to the streets to protect their voting rights. He announced that resistance programmes would be organised at the local level, and that public tribunals would be convened to hear testimonies from individuals who have allegedly been affected by the revision process.

Broader Controversy Over SIR

Raj's intervention comes amid a growing national controversy over the SIR exercise. Multiple political parties and civil society groups have raised concerns about the potential exclusion of genuine voters from electoral rolls. Critics argue that the procedural requirements under the revision could disproportionately burden marginalised communities — farmers, Adivasis, Dalits, and minorities — who may lack documentation.

Notably, this is not the first time the SIR process has drawn public protests; earlier rounds of electoral roll revision have faced scrutiny over data accuracy and the administrative burden placed on ordinary voters. The ECI has not yet publicly responded to Raj's specific demands for resignation and legal accountability.

With public tribunals planned and local resistance programmes in the pipeline, the campaign against SIR is set to intensify in the coming weeks.