Hundreds form human chain in Hyderabad against SIR, demanding voter roll revisions

According to the Indian Express report, hundreds of people formed a human chain at Hyderabad’s Tank Bund on Saturday, demanding the scrapping of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Protesters accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of acting as an agent of the BJP government and called for the repeal of the CEC Act, 2023. They claimed the SIR exercise could disenfranchise nearly half of Telangana’s electorate, with 73 lakh deletions and 93 lakh notices issued. Protesters said the process had traumatised vulnerable groups, including women and transgender persons, and added to the burden on Booth Level Officers. The protest was co-organised by civil society and student groups, with participants condemning police violence in Delhi and asserting peaceful protest as a constitutional right. The final rolls are due on November 9.

Reporting: Indian Express

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