Telangana Congress urges CEO not to rush SIR process
Hyderabad, May 15 : Claiming that the Special Intensive Revision led to a change of government in West Bengal, Telangana Congress president Mahesh Kumar Goud on Friday urged the state Chief Electoral Officer not to carry out the process in a hurry.
A delegation of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee leaders led by Mahesh Kumar Goud called on Chief Electoral Officer C. Sudharshan Reddy and submitted a memorandum, urging him to conduct the Special Intensive Revision in a fair and impartial manner.
Later, the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief told the media that the change of government in West Bengal occurred due to the Special Intensive Revision.
“The party which should have won the election suffered defeat because of the Special Intensive Revision,” he said.
Stating that no election is scheduled in Telangana for the next two years, he said there was no need to rush the Special Intensive Revision.
He suggested that the process be conducted over the next one-and-a-half years.
Goud pointed out that the Census is currently being conducted.
He said that if the Special Intensive Revision is conducted alongside the Census, it will put pressure on the staff.
He demanded that the period for responding to any notice issued under the Special Intensive Revision should be extended to three months.
He also suggested that the booth-level officer should visit every house three to four times for verification.
The delegation included Minister Ponnam Prabhakar, Members of Parliament Anil Kumar Yadav and Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy.
The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee stated in its representation that the Special Intensive Revision was conducted carelessly immediately before elections in several states, resulting in confusion, anxiety, and distrust among citizens.
It made various suggestions for conducting the process in Telangana in a fair, transparent, and impartial manner.
In view of the increased number of voters since 2002, the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee called for conducting the process meticulously and in a phased manner.
The Congress party demanded that, in light of experiences in other states, the Special Intensive Revision process ought not to be rushed or concluded within 2 to 3 months.
It suggested a timeline of 1.5 to 2 years, noting that adequate time would facilitate the resolution of objections, reduce public apprehension, and lessen administrative pressure.
The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee said that before deleting the name of any voter, a minimum of 7 days' written notice must be served.
Instances from other states indicate that deletions have been made without proper notice, sometimes based on hearsay or unverified home visits, it said.
In Telangana, notices should be served personally or through a documented process in the presence of witnesses.