After Two Days of Chaos, the Government Finally Allows a Debate on SIR. But the Trust Deficit Has Only Grown.

The government agreed to a discussion on the Special Intensive Revision only after two days of relentless opposition protests that brought Parliament to a standstill. This hesitation itself exposes how fragile the government’s commitment to transparency in electoral reforms has become.

Instead of responding to the growing public anxiety over the Special Intensive Revision of voter lists, the Centre chose silence and evasion. And now, by pushing SIR into a vague bundle of general poll reforms, it looks less interested in addressing the real concerns and more invested in protecting its own political narrative.

Across the country, people are worried about arbitrary deletions from voter lists and the possibility of targeted disenfranchisement. The opposition has repeatedly warned that the entire process risks becoming an organised attempt at vote chori. If the exercise is clean, why did the government resist even a basic discussion? What exactly was it trying to avoid?

A confident democracy answers questions. A nervous government dodges them.

December 9 is no longer just a date on the calendar. It is a test of whether the government is willing to submit its actions to scrutiny and prove that the integrity of India’s voter rolls has not been compromised.

Mohammad Shafi
National Vice President
Social Democratic Party of India