Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 21 Aug: A Congress delegation led by former MLA Manoj Rawat today called on Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Dr BVRC Purushottam and submitted a memorandum expressing strong objections to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR‑2026) of the electoral rolls in Uttarakhand. The delegation alleged large‑scale irregularities and accused the authorities of deliberately removing valid voters’ names under the guise of the revision process. Rawat described the deletions as a direct assault on democracy and warned that Congress would fight the matter from the streets to the courts if corrective action was not taken.
Rawat claimed that bulk fake Form‑7 objections were filed using forged signatures and identities, resulting in the removal of genuine voters, including MLAs. He claimed that in Udham Singh Nagar alone over one lakh names have been marked as suspect without proper notice to political parties. He demanded that all such objections be annulled, that no name be deleted without personal legal notice under Form‑13 and 14, and that an independent audit be conducted into the alleged fraud. He said Congress would not tolerate what he termed administrative collusion to disenfranchise citizens and vowed to expose those responsible.
Responding to the delegation, the Chief Electoral Officer assured that the SIR process is being conducted strictly according to rules and with full transparency. He informed that nine senior administrative officers have been deployed as supervision officers in districts where claims and objections are numerous, and that divisional commissioners of Garhwal and Kumaon have also been assigned responsibility as observers. He added that instructions have also been issued for regular meetings with political parties to ensure confidence in the process.
The Congress delegation included General Secretary Rajendra Bhandari, Vice President Suryakant Dhasmana, Jasvinder Singh Gogi, Dr Pratima Singh and Sujata Pal. Rawat reiterated that unless every fake objection was cancelled and valid names restored before the final publication on 15 September, Congress would intensify its agitation, insisting that the right to vote cannot be compromised under any circumstances.
