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Chennai, Oct 28 (IANS) Tamil Nadu BJP spokesperson ANS Prasad accused the DMK-led alliance of “protecting fake voters” in Tamil Nadu, especially in Chief Minister MK Stalin’s Kolathur constituency, even as the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) special intensive revision (SIR) of voter lists gathers pace across the country.
“The DMK is opposing a transparent verification process because it fears large-scale exposure of fake voter entries,” Prasad said.
“Our party has filed a petition in the ECI identifying 19,476 suspected fake voters in Kolathur. SIR is a constitutional exercise aimed at upholding one-person-one-vote. Those who are obstructing it are protecting electoral fraud,” he said.
The BJP also questioned DMK’s claim of enrolling 2.5 crore new members through its ‘Tamil Nadu Under One Front’ outreach and demanded a full audit to ensure authenticity.
Describing the opposition by DMK, Congress and Trinamool Congress as a “coordinated campaign to undermine voter verification”, Prasad said, “When transparency is opposed, it creates suspicion.”
Chief Minister MK Stalin has dismissed the SIR as a “BJP-ECI conspiracy”, alleging that it is being used to remove genuine opposition voters.
The DMK has called an all-party meeting on November 2 to protest the move, calling it “undemocratic and politically motivated”.
ECI officials clarified that the special intensive vetting – covering more than 51 crore voters across the country – is a routine, constitutionally mandated process designed to eliminate duplication and errors.
This exercise enables door-to-door verification without mandatory documents at the initial stage, thereby ensuring inclusivity and accuracy.
Citing the example of Bihar, where the number of deletions is reportedly six times more than the additions, the BJP said the practice strengthens electoral integrity rather than curtailing rights.
In West Bengal, where Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s government ordered several bureaucratic transfers soon after the SIR was announced, the BJP has sought ECI’s intervention to cancel those changes, citing violation of service conduct and neutrality norms.
Political observers say the SIR represents an important democratic reform aimed at restoring confidence in the electoral process. He believes that collaboration among all stakeholders is essential to ensure a clean slate, credible mandate and renewed public confidence in India’s democracy.
–IANS
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