The INDIA bloc held a large protest at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on November 5, demanding the cancellation of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and changes to the law governing the appointment of election commissioners, according to a report by Prajavani.
The protest was organised under the slogan “Save the Vote, Save the Country”. Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and D.K. Shivakumar, minister M.B. Patil, Yathindra Siddaramaiah, legislator Dinesh Gundurao and actor Prakash Raj were among those reported to have attended. The demonstration brought the dispute over electoral rolls into the public space in Karnataka, with the organisers linking it to the conduct of upcoming local body and panchayat elections.
Five resolutions were placed before the gathering. The protesters demanded that the SIR process be withdrawn, describing it as illegal and against democratic principles. They also sought the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar and the repeal of the law governing the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner. The resolutions further called for the autonomy of the appointment process to be secured in accordance with directions attributed to the Supreme Court.
The protest also demanded that the Karnataka government reject the state’s final SIR list. Another resolution called for forthcoming local body, taluk panchayat and zilla panchayat elections in Karnataka to be conducted using the pre-SIR list. The demand places the electoral-roll revision process directly in the context of local governance, where voter eligibility lists determine participation in elections to institutions responsible for civic administration.
Speakers at the protest made several political allegations about the impact of the roll revision. Prakash Raj claimed that names of Dalits and Adivasis had been removed in Karnataka and called for the SIR process to be boycotted. He also questioned claims about the number of Bangladeshi migrants in the country and criticised the Union government for not responding to the issue, according to the report. These statements were made during the protest and were not independently verified in the supplied report.
Raj also said that the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar alone would not address the issue and demanded that the entire SIR process be abandoned. He urged the Congress government and party workers to visit polling booths and prevent what he described as an attempt to manipulate the process. The report did not provide the number of names removed from Karnataka’s electoral rolls or details of any official response to the allegations.
The gathering also reflected tensions within the protesting group. When supporters raised slogans in favour of D.K. Shivakumar as he began speaking, B.K. Hariprasad reportedly asked them to stop and reminded the gathering that members of different parties were present. Shivakumar subsequently appealed against personality-based slogans and asked party workers to prioritise the organisation over individual leaders.
The immediate demands from the protest are the withdrawal of the SIR process, rejection of Karnataka’s final list and the use of the pre-SIR list for upcoming local elections. The Prajavani report did not state whether the Election Commission or the Karnataka government had accepted any of the five resolutions.
