61% SIR enumeration forms distributed within first week

Data released by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Tamil Nadu said the forms have reached 61.34 per cent of voters registered with the Election Commission of India (ECI). Meanwhile chief minister MK Stalin and opposition leader Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) continued to spar over the exercise which the latter supports as an ally of the BJP

Enumeration forms as part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls have been distributed to about 3.93 crore voters in Tamil Nadu in the first week of the exercise which is being opposed by the ruling DMK and its allies.

A Special Intensive Revision (SIR) official during the house-to-house verification process to update voter list, the exercise to verify and update India’s voter lists, in Thoothukudi. (ANI)

Data released by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Tamil Nadu said the forms have reached 61.34 per cent of the voters registered with the Election Commission of India (ECI). Meanwhile chief minister MK Stalin and opposition leader Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) continued to spar over the exercise which the latter supports as an ally of the BJP.

Perambalur district in Central Tamil Nadu topped the list with 94.41 per cent of forms (5.57 lakh of the total 5.90 lakh voters) distributed between November 4 and November 10, while Chengalpattu district recorded the lowest with just 22.8% of forms (6.37 lakh of 27.8 lakh voters) being distributed.

Despite the progress, a helpline set up by the ruling DMK government has been receiving at least 600 to 700 calls a day from its Booth Level Agents (BLAs) in the state about discrepancies in the exercise, the party said.

“SIR is a tool picked up by the BJP to threaten the DMK similar to the ED and the CBI,” Stalin said.

“But, their efforts will always fail in Tamil Nadu.” He added that while the DMK has challenged SIR before the Supreme Court, the AIADMK has approached the court to add them in the case. “ If they are concerned enough, they should have filed a separate petition. I sense, there is a conspiracy in this,” Stalin said.

EPS questioned why the DMK was so afraid of SIR. “Even after residents have shifted houses, their old names are still included. The SIR work is meant to remove such irregularities and include genuine voters,” EPS said. “But the DMK is opposing it because it thrives on fake votes.”