'50,000 voters to be cut': Akhilesh flags SIR 'conspiracy', seeks deadline extension

SP chief says SIR is being used to delete voters in constituencies where the INDIA bloc led in 2024; Election Commission urged to issue SOP and extend timeline.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday accused the BJP government and the Election Commission of conspiring to delete more than 50,000 voters from each Assembly segment where the SP and the INDIA bloc performed strongly in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He made the allegation amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Uttar Pradesh and 11 other states, and demanded that the poll panel extend the timeline for the exercise.

'Major preparations' in UP and Bengal, Yadav says

Accoridng to PTI, addressing a press conference at the SP headquarters on the birth anniversary of his father, party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav, Akhilesh said the party had received information that the BJP, “in collusion with the Election Commission,” was preparing large-scale deletions in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. He argued that the SIR exercise should not be conducted during the wedding season and called for more time for voter roll revision in Uttar Pradesh.

Cites Assembly-segment leads from 2024 to argue motive

Yadav pointed to a shift in electoral leads between the 2022 Assembly elections and the 2024 general elections to support his charge.

He said the BJP won 255 seats in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls but led in 162 Assembly segments in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The SP, which won 111 Assembly seats in 2022, led in 183 segments in 2024.
The Congress, which won two Assembly seats in 2022, led in 40 segments last year.

On this basis, he alleged that the BJP introduced SIR 'as a conspiracy' after losing ground in the 2024 segment-wise leads.

Raises concerns over poll panel’s conduct, says complaints ignored

Yadav said the SP had expected impartiality from the Election Commission but claimed its role in recent bypolls in Uttar Pradesh had raised concerns. He said the party filed several complaints but no action was taken.

Warns of deletions in INDIA bloc strongholds, asks cadre to verify lists

The SP chief reiterated the allegation that more than 50,000 voters were being prepared for deletion in every Assembly constituency won by the SP or the INDIA bloc in 2024, with SIR being used as the pretext. He said the focus was “primarily” on Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal after the general election results.

He urged party office-bearers and workers to check voter lists carefully, meet booth level officers, ensure eligible voters are added, and report irregularities to party headquarters.

Audio clip played, Kannauj cited as 'target'

Yadav played an audio recording of a conversation between two persons, purportedly including a sub-divisional magistrate, discussing technical issues related to SIR. He cited his Lok Sabha constituency Kannauj as an example of an area he said had become a “target.” He referred to the removal of a statue in Prayagraj before the Mahakumbh to argue that voters could also be removed, and said this was what was being attempted.

SOP demand and timeline extension

Demanding a clear standard operating procedure for political parties for the SIR exercise, Yadav sought more time for the voter roll cleanup. He said there were 414 days left for elections and alleged a plan to delete more than 50,000 votes in every Assembly constituency in Uttar Pradesh. He said SP workers would try to prevent this.

Mulayam Singh Yadav memorial announcement reiterated

On the occasion of Mulayam Singh Yadav’s birth anniversary, Akhilesh said the party had earlier decided to inaugurate the ‘Netaji Memorial’ on November 22 next year and reiterated that it would be opened with a grand ceremony on that date. He also said toppers and gold medallists from Dr Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University were felicitated with iPads in Mulayam Singh Yadav’s memory.