Election Commission on SIR row: Agendas to be shared before meetings, minutes to follow
The Commission maintained that its decisions relating to the SIR exercise were taken with the approval of all three Election Commissioners
- Sep 26, 2026,
- Updated Sep 26, 2026 8:58 PM IST
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday announced new measures to bring greater procedural transparency to its functioning amid the ongoing controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The poll panel said agendas for all Commission meetings will now be circulated in advance, while minutes of the meetings will be issued after deliberations.
The decision came at a meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi, attended by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi. The meeting followed reports alleging that Sandhu and Joshi had raised objections on record at least 14 times over the past 10 months regarding aspects of the SIR exercise and the functioning of the poll panel.
READ THIS: ECI says SIR decisions across states were approved unanimously by all three commissioners
EC maintains SIR decisions were unanimous
Addressing the controversy, the ECI said the June 24, 2025 order for conducting SIR across all states and Union Territories was approved unanimously by all three commissioners. The Commission also said the SIR schedules issued subsequently for 12 States/UTs and another 19 States/UTs received unanimous approval.
The poll panel further stated that differences in views and observations are part of institutional deliberations and maintained that its orders have legal sanction and follow statutory procedures.
The ECI also clarified that letters sent by Sandhu and Joshi to the Cabinet Secretary concerned the functioning of an officer deputed to the Commission and were not related to any policy matter or the functioning of its IT division.
ALSO READ: SIR voter list: ECI extends claims deadline for Delhi, Maharashtra; check new dates
SIR scale and voter concerns
The SIR exercise has emerged as one of the largest electoral-roll revision exercises in recent years. According to reports, more than 13 crore names were struck off draft electoral rolls across 30 States and Union Territories during the exercise, intensifying scrutiny over the process of additions, deletions and voter verification.
In Delhi, the Supreme Court recently questioned the manner in which notices were issued to voters, with more than 33 lakh voters receiving notices over issues including alleged “logical discrepancies”. The court observed that some notices appeared to have been issued mechanically and sought safeguards to refine the process.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday announced new measures to bring greater procedural transparency to its functioning amid the ongoing controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The poll panel said agendas for all Commission meetings will now be circulated in advance, while minutes of the meetings will be issued after deliberations.
The decision came at a meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi, attended by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi. The meeting followed reports alleging that Sandhu and Joshi had raised objections on record at least 14 times over the past 10 months regarding aspects of the SIR exercise and the functioning of the poll panel.
READ THIS: ECI says SIR decisions across states were approved unanimously by all three commissioners
EC maintains SIR decisions were unanimous
Addressing the controversy, the ECI said the June 24, 2025 order for conducting SIR across all states and Union Territories was approved unanimously by all three commissioners. The Commission also said the SIR schedules issued subsequently for 12 States/UTs and another 19 States/UTs received unanimous approval.
The poll panel further stated that differences in views and observations are part of institutional deliberations and maintained that its orders have legal sanction and follow statutory procedures.
The ECI also clarified that letters sent by Sandhu and Joshi to the Cabinet Secretary concerned the functioning of an officer deputed to the Commission and were not related to any policy matter or the functioning of its IT division.
ALSO READ: SIR voter list: ECI extends claims deadline for Delhi, Maharashtra; check new dates
SIR scale and voter concerns
The SIR exercise has emerged as one of the largest electoral-roll revision exercises in recent years. According to reports, more than 13 crore names were struck off draft electoral rolls across 30 States and Union Territories during the exercise, intensifying scrutiny over the process of additions, deletions and voter verification.
In Delhi, the Supreme Court recently questioned the manner in which notices were issued to voters, with more than 33 lakh voters receiving notices over issues including alleged “logical discrepancies”. The court observed that some notices appeared to have been issued mechanically and sought safeguards to refine the process.