REPORT BY SWATI
New Delhi, September 23, 2026:
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has responded to reports suggesting differences among its three members over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The development followed a report by The Indian Express, which said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally raised objections on at least 14 occasions over the past 10 months over various decisions and procedures. The reported concerns included changes to Form 6, voter-list deletions and additions, access to the electoral database and aspects of the SIR process.
The Election Commission, however, has rejected the suggestion of an internal rift, saying that decisions taken by the poll panel, including those related to SIR, had the approval of all three Election Commissioners — Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.
EC sources said that the issues flagged by the two commissioners were observations that were considered by the Commission and did not amount to a formal dissent in the final decisions. Reports also said that the Commission’s decisions carried the approval of all three members.
The controversy has nevertheless triggered a political debate over the functioning of the poll panel. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav described the reported developments as extremely serious and urged the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of the matter.
The issue comes amid the continuing nationwide debate over SIR and the verification, deletion and inclusion of names in electoral rolls.
