ECI legally has no right to hold SIR, says Manish Tewari

Congress MP Manish Tewari on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, claimed that the Election Commission does not have the legal right to conduct the SIR and it should be stopped; He suggested that many Opposition leaders and members of the public now felt the need to raise questions about the impartiality of the poll body.

Initiating a debate on Electoral Reforms in the Lok Sabha, Mr. Tewari said that the first electoral reform requires amendment to the 2023 law on election of Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.

He said the law provides that the delegation shall consist of the Prime Minister, the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and a Cabinet Minister.

“My suggestion is that two members be added to this panel: the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and the Chief Justice of India.

“If such a committee is established then”theek se khela hobega‘ and will play an important role in clearing doubts on the Election Commission (EC),’ said Mr. Tewari.

The Congress leader said BR Ambedkar ensured that the ECI became a permanent body.

“The ECI was expected to work as an impartial arbiter, but unfortunately I must say that many members sitting on this side (pointing to the opposition benches) and many others felt the need to raise questions about its impartiality,” Mr. Tewari said.

He said that Article 327 gives the Parliament the right to make laws regarding voter lists and their delimitation.

“I regret to say that Special Intensive Revision (of electoral rolls) is being discussed across the country. SIR is being done in many states, but I say with great responsibility that the EC does not have the legal right to conduct SIR,” Mr. Tewari said.

“There is no provision for SIR in the constitution or law. It is a right of the EC that if there is anything wrong in the electoral rolls of any constituency, it can correct it for reasons that should be recorded in writing and made public. Only then can you conduct SIR, you cannot conduct SIR for entire Bihar or entire Kerala,” the Congress leader said. he said.

“If you are going to do SIR, do it separately in the districts where there are problems in the voter rolls, record the problems in writing and only then can SIR be done. I want to ask the government in writing where the reasons are,” he said.

“Stop this SIR. There is no provision in the law that allows the SIR to continue. You will say if the previous SIRs were illegal, my answer to this is that more than one wrong does not make a right,” he said.

Mr. Tewari said there are two stakeholders in Indian democracy: those who vote as voters and the political parties that take part in the poll.

At a time when voting rights were granted on narrow principles in various countries, constitution makers ensured that every Indian over the age of 21 had the right to vote.

He said the biggest electoral reform was when Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 in 1988-89.