NDTV has exclusively accessed the representations made by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi to the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on a range of issues linked to the Election Commission of India (ECI), Special Intensive Revision (SIR), electronic voting machines (EVMs) and the upcoming assembly election in Punjab, where the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is in power.
Rahul Gandhi flagged urgency ahead of the Punjab assembly elections scheduled for early 2027. He alleged the number of voters in the border state fell from 2.14 crore in June 2026 to 1.93 crore when the draft electoral roll was published in August. This meant some 20 lakh names have left the electoral roll, he said. The final electoral roll was scheduled for publication on October 12; in addition to his, Rahul Gandhi said letting disputed decisions, including the ‘modified’ Form 6 without any rollback option, stay unresolved could result in eligible voters not appearing in the final voter rolls, according to the representation.
He said many other states have the same concern.
The ECI’s top three officers are Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi. The representation, however, clarified that it is not asking for the removal of the chief election commissioner. The Congress MP alleged he had recorded a note of dissent at a meeting of the selection committee to appoint Gyanesh Kumar back in February 2025. Regarding Form 6, which is needed to register as a voter, the Congress MP referred to the demand for a declaration on whether the applicant or their relatives had appeared in an earlier SIR of the electoral roll. He said Section 13B of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, vests preparation and revision of electoral rolls in electoral registration officers (EROs) and they cannot be curtailed through software or technical implementation.
On the issue of SIR and EVMs, Rahul Gandhi said the ECI’s collective power has been unilaterally used by the chief election commissioner for the SIR exercise. It said it is only seeking a proper look into serious allegations and scope of action in accordance with law. The Congress leader flagged the ECINET over what he claimed was its “centralised and opaque design”.
As per the Supreme Court’s website, the registry had flagged 14 defects including lack of a clear copy of the ID card of the Congress president and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, a co-petitioner in the case.
