Punjab Newsline | Punjab
Sri Anandpur Sahib MP from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Malvinder Singh Kang, has expressed serious concerns over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Punjab. In a detailed letter to the Election Commission of India, Kang questioned the transparency of the process and flagged its potential impact on genuine voters.
Kang warned that the manner in which the SIR exercise is being conducted could adversely affect legitimate voters, particularly the large Non-Resident Indian (NRI) Punjabi community. Referring to similar exercises in states like Bihar and West Bengal, he noted that there have been instances where a significant number of voters were allegedly removed from electoral rolls, raising concerns about fairness and intent.
He alleged that under the pretext of voter verification, there is a risk of genuine voters being excluded from the voter list. Kang further claimed that Punjab has often been targeted politically in the past, and the current process raises similar suspicions.
In his letter, Kang highlighted the concerns of lakhs of NRIs who maintain strong emotional, economic, and democratic ties with their home state. He pointed out that strict deadlines, mandatory physical presence, and procedural complexities could lead to wrongful deletion of names of voters residing abroad.
The AAP MP urged the Election Commission to introduce a practical and NRI-friendly system during the SIR process. He suggested enabling online and digital verification, providing flexible timelines for document submission, facilitating verification through Indian embassies and consulates, and setting up a dedicated grievance redressal mechanism. He also emphasized safeguards to ensure that voters temporarily residing abroad are not removed from electoral rolls.
Kang also questioned why Punjab is being subjected to a stricter verification schedule compared to other states holding elections around the same time. He termed this as “electoral pressure” and called for equal and fair treatment.
Appealing to all political parties and citizens of Punjab to remain vigilant, Kang stressed that not even a single genuine voter should be removed from the rolls. He reaffirmed that AAP will strongly oppose any move aimed at disenfranchising voters and will continue to demand full transparency in the voter verification process
