Goa Election Crisis: Atishi Warns of Voter Roll Chaos Amid Dual Processes

How will the SIR process be monitored when all political workers are busy in election campaigning? Atishi warns of oversight collapse in Goa

New Delhi, November 7

"At a time when elections are underway, the entire political machinery of parties will be fully engaged in the election process and in campaigning. It is natural that political parties will have their own district-level leaders and booth-level agents (BLA) appointed for these campaigns. If party workers are busy with election campaigning, they cannot participate in or monitor the SIR process. This is why it is a matter of grave concern that two processes, the Special Intensive Revision on one hand and the Zila Panchayat elections on the other, are being conducted simultaneously in Goa," she said.

This comes following a high-level delegation from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) expressed significant concerns regarding the integrity of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process for electoral rolls in Goa. The delegation convened with the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday to address these issues.

The delegation was led by senior AAP leader and Goa Prabhari Atishi, and included AAP National Secretary Pankaj Gupta and AAP Goa President Amit Palekar. The AAP delegation questioned the "extraordinary urgency" behind conducting the SIR of voter rolls simultaneously with the Zila Parishad elections, as stated in the release.

The AAP warned that holding both exercises together will cripple oversight and risk large-scale errors in the electoral roll, with Atishi asking pointedly, "How will the SIR process be monitored when all political workers are busy in election campaigning?"

After the meeting, Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly and Goa Prabhari Atishi stated that the SIR process in Goa has already begun and that the draft electoral roll is scheduled to be published on December 9.

The Zila Panchayat elections are scheduled for December 13, and reservation notifications for those elections were announced today. She emphasised that once the reservation announcement is made, the Model Code of Conduct will come into force for the Zila Panchayat elections within two to three days.

The AAP Goa Incharge Atishi asked why the Zila Panchayat elections and the SIR could not have been staggered. She said, "The Zila Panchayat election could have been held three weeks later, and the SIR process could have begun three weeks later. Why has this urgency arisen that both the SIR process and the Zila Panchayat elections are being run at the exact same time, placing a single election machinery under immense strain? We raised this issue with the Election Commission."

Atishi added that the SIR has already commenced in 12 states, including Goa, and acknowledged the Commission's detailed provisions to deal with cases of wrongful inclusion in the draft electoral roll. Those wrongly included will receive notices, be asked to produce documentation, and will be thoroughly investigated. However, she highlighted a critical omission in the SIR circulars. There is no clearly spelt-out procedure for those who are wrongly excluded from the draft roll, and that person will have to start the process of registration as a new voter.

"Suppose I am a voter who voted in the last Lok Sabha election and in the recent Zila Panchayat election. How will I know if my name has been omitted from the draft electoral roll? There must be provisions for people whose names have been wrongly excluded from the draft electoral roll. The right to vote is my most fundamental constitutional right, and if my name is omitted from the draft electoral roll in this manner, it is the responsibility of a constitutional body like the Election Commission to restore my name and inform me so that I can reclaim my voting right," Atishi said.

In response to a media query, Atishi said, "We went to the Election Commission to discuss these issues. There was discussion, but no satisfactory explanation was provided for why both processes in Goa are being run together, or why the SIR process is not being implemented under the political parties' BLAs. The Zila Panchayat election is on December 13; the SIR could have started on December 14. What is the rush? Goa's Assembly election is not until February 2027. Why this sudden hurry to run the SIR at the same time as the Zila Panchayat election? We are worried that running both processes together will prevent adequate monitoring of the SIR."

Atishi concluded by stating that the AAP will closely scrutinise the draft electoral roll when it is published and will undertake its own checks to ensure that people have not been wrongly removed: "When the draft electoral roll comes out, we will, on our part, properly verify and check whether people's names have been incorrectly deleted."

Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar stated that the poll body will conduct the second phase of the SIR in the following states: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.

According to ECI, printing and training will take place from October 28 to November 3, followed by an Enumeration Phase from November to December 4. The draft electoral rolls will be published on December 9, followed by a claims and objections period from December 9 to January 8, 2026.

The Notice Phase (for hearing and verification) will take place between December 9 and January 31, 2026, with publication of Final Electoral Rolls on February 7, 2026.

— ANI