Booth Level Officers (BLOs) assist voters in filling forms for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls in Bikaner on December 1, 2025 | Photo credit: PTI
At a meeting of opposition parties on Monday (December 1, 2025) morning, there were differences of opinion over the continuation of protests against the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of electoral rolls. It was decided that the opposition would “play by ear” rather than accept a blanket call to disrupt proceedings.
The decision was taken only for the floor strategy on Monday (December 1) and Tuesday (December 2), according to sources. The opposition would take the call based on the government’s response to its demand for a debate on “electoral reforms”, in which it hoped to flag “anomalies” and “negligent practices” in the SIR.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC), which skipped the meeting, continues to insist on continuing to focus on SIR in this session.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi spoke at length about how SIR was misused by the ruling party. According to him, the opposition did not receive the final voter list in time for review. By the time they got their hands on it, it was usually too late. The Congress leader also spoke about the Bihar Assembly election results, which he said his party was studying, sources said. SIR contributed to the victory of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar, Gandhi told the gathering.
Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Ram Gopal Yadav has given detailed reports on the ongoing SIR in Uttar Pradesh, according to sources. Mr. Yadav reportedly claimed that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath himself watched the exercise and spoke directly to the district magistrates. According to him, the names of minority voters were systematically eliminated.
Asked what the opposition must do to raise the issue, the Left parties, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and several others pointed out that it would be unwise to hold a continuous protest against the SIR. They reportedly said there were several other issues to flag.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Parliamentary Party President K. Kanimozhi opined that while SIR is important, other issues also need attention.
In the end it was decided that the protests would continue on Monday (1/12) and Tuesday (2/12) and for the rest of the week a new call would be taken at a meeting on Wednesday based on the government’s response.
Published – 01 Dec 2025 20:14 IST
