SIR row deepens: Ex-SC, HC judges to examine voter deletions, revision process and legal safeguards

New Delhi: Five former Supreme Court and High Court judges have been appointed to an independent commission to examine the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, as protests over the exercise were held in Delhi and Mumbai on October 2.

The Lawyers’ Association for Constitution (LAFC) has constituted a five-member commission of former judges to examine the constitutional and statutory validity, methodology and impact of the Election Commission of India’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The commission will be chaired by former Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B Lokur. Its other members are former Supreme Court judge Justice AK Patnaik, former Jammu and Kashmir High Court Chief Justice Badar Durrez Ahmed, former Delhi High Court judge Justice Rekha Sharma and former Patna High Court judge Justice Anjana Prakash.

According to LAFC, the commission was formed following concerns raised by citizens about the design, implementation and consequences of the SIR exercise.

What will the commission examine?

The commission will examine whether the revision process protects the inclusion of eligible voters while excluding ineligible or duplicate entries.

Its proposed inquiry will cover:

• The constitutional and statutory basis of SIR
• The methodology used for revising electoral rolls
• The impact of the exercise on eligible voters
• Relevant legislation, notifications and verification procedures
• Data concerning additions and deletions from electoral rolls

The commission plans to hold public hearings through full and regional benches. Citizens, civil society organisations and experts will be invited to present their accounts and evidence.

A dedicated research wing will analyse electoral-roll data, while a legal support team will examine the relevant legal framework and verification procedures.

Who will assist the commission?

Several senior lawyers are expected to provide legal assistance, including Kapil Sibal, Prashant Bhushan, Chander Uday Singh, Prashanto Chandra Sen and Raju Ramachandran, along with Rebecca Mammen John, Warisha Farasat and Vrinda Grover.

LAFC said the former judges would retain responsibility for the commission’s findings and recommendations and that the sponsoring organisation and supporting committees would not influence its substantive conclusions.

The commission aims to complete its inquiry and publish its final report by December 2026.

Protests over SIR in Delhi and Mumbai

The development came on the same day as protests against the Election Commission and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in Delhi and Mumbai.

In Delhi, political leaders, student groups and civil society activists gathered around Jantar Mantar despite police restrictions. Police had earlier refused permission for the proposed demonstration and tightened security in central Delhi.

AAP leaders also participated in the Delhi protest. The party said more than 1,000 of its leaders and workers were detained, while other reports put the number of people detained during the wider demonstrations at lower figures.

In Mumbai, the Cockroach Janta Party held a protest at Shivaji Park and demanded Kumar’s resignation, citing objections to the SIR exercise and electoral-roll issues.

Why is SIR at the centre of the dispute?

The Election Commission's stated purpose of electoral-roll revision is to identify and remove duplicate and ineligible entries while maintaining accurate voter lists.

Protesters and some political groups have raised concerns about the methodology and the possibility of eligible voters being excluded. Those concerns are now also being examined by the newly constituted former-judges commission.

The commission's eventual report is therefore expected to focus on the legal framework, implementation process and documented impact of SIR rather than the political demands raised during the protests.

What happens next?

The SIR dispute is now unfolding on two parallel tracks: public and political protests are demanding greater transparency and accountability, while the LAFC-backed commission plans a separate examination involving former judges, public hearings, legal analysis and electoral-roll data.

The commission is not a government or Election Commission body, and its findings will be its own. Its proposed December 2026 report could provide an additional independent assessment of the legal and procedural questions surrounding SIR.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission's position on the revision process and the evidence presented by protesters will remain important to assessing the competing claims about voter-list changes.