Congress MP Hibi Eden says SIR exercise "violates fundamental rights" of Keralites; seeks discussion in Lok Sabha

According to the Congress MP, the process of conducting the SIR is aimed at "towards violating the fundamental rights of the people of Kerala" and an attempt to "disturb the process of free and fair elections," which will happen in 2026.

"I hereby give notice of my intention to ask for leave to move a motion for the adjournment of the business of the house for the purpose of discussion a definite matter of urgent importance, namely: The ECI and Central Government's decision to conduct SIR in Kerala is surely directed towards violating the fundamental rights of the people of Kerala and is an attempt to disturb the process of free and fair elections which are due to be held in a few months," the Congress MP wrote in the motion addressed to the Lok Sabha Secretary General.

Calling for more transparency into the exercise, Eden mentioned, "The revision of the voters' list should be conducted in a transparent manner and therefore the carrying out of this process in such a hasty manner is clearly an attempt to undermine the mandate of the people in upcoming elections."

"Accordingly, it is imperative that this house discusses this issue in detail, which poses a grave challenge to the ethos of our democratic setup," he added.

Meanwhile, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Sudhakar Singh reiterated that the INDIA bloc would continue to oppose the SIR until the government responds.

"The RJD-INDIA alliance will certainly continue its struggle until the government agrees to develop a concrete SOP on the SIR to address the lack of transparency in the electoral system over the past several years under PM Modi's rule. Until public perception of the Election Commission improves, both in its functioning and in the public's minds, we will continue this fight," he told ANI.

Earlier, just before the start of the second day of the Winter Session, Congress and other opposition MPs staged a protest against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls.

Opposition members, including MPs from the INDIA bloc, gathered outside the Makar Dwar of the Parliament ahead of the day's proceedings to express their discontent over the ongoing SIR exercise.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Sonia Gandhi also joined the protest.

On Monday, the first day of the Winter Session, the Lok Sabha witnessed multiple adjournments till noon, 2 pm, and later in the day, as opposition MPs demanded a discussion on the SIR being conducted in 12 States and Union Territories. Today too, amid the Lok Sabha proceedings, Congress MPs continued their sloganeering and protests in the House. (ANI)