SIR by ECI is clandestine attempt by BJP to prepare National Register of Citizens, claims activist Shiv Sundar

Activist Shiv Sundar claims ECI's Special Intensive Revision is a covert BJP strategy to verify citizenship and undermine democracy.

“The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) by the Election Commission of India (ECI) is against the spirit of the Constitution, and has no support in existing laws,” claimed activist and writer Shiv Sundar in Vijayapura on February 11.

“As per the Constitution and laws like Representation of People’s Act, the Election Commission of India has no power to verify the citizenship status of people. It is a judicial process that should be decided by a tribunal. However, the ECI’s SIR is doing exactly that. What is baffling is that, till recently, ECI was claiming it was fixing errors in the electoral rolls. But now, it has admitted before the Supreme Court that it is verifying citizenship through SIR,’’ he said at a workshop on SIR, organised by the May Sahitya Mela, Dalit Vidyarthi Parishat and Ladai publications.

“The Indian Constitution is an obstacle to the Fascist forces that are trying to turn the country into a Brahmin-Hindu corporatist state”Shiv SundarActivist and writer

“Till now, the ECI had maintained that the SIR was intended for electoral roll revision, that included rectifying errors, removing names of dead and displaced voters, and adding new voters. But now, the ECI’s lawyers have admitted before the Supreme Court that they are verifying citizenship status of voters. This is in violation of judgments in some past cases where SC stated that citizenship verification is the duty of special tribunals, and not the ECI,” he said.

“It is in the light of these false claims and disinformation, we say that in the name of SIR, the Union Government is registering FIRs against all citizens,” he said.

“SIR is a tool for the government to question our citizenship and ask us to prove our citizenship. It is hiding behind a few documents to suspect all of us of being aliens, and insists that we prove our Indian citizenship. We have a strong suspicion that SIR is only a facade for the real intentions of the government, which is to prepare a National Register of Citizens.