DMK moves top court against SIR implementation in TN

CHENNAI: The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Monday filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the implementation of the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Tamil Nadu, contending that the process is unconstitutional and could deprive lakhs of voters of their franchise.

In a statement, the DMK said the move followed the resolution adopted at the all-party meeting convened in Chennai on November 2 under the chairmanship of Chief Minister and party president MK Stalin. The resolution stated that political parties in Tamil Nadu had “no alternative but to approach the Supreme Court to safeguard the voting rights of the people and protect democracy.”

Accordingly, DMK organising secretary RS Bharathi filed the petition on behalf of the party on Monday, with senior advocate and MP NR Elango representing the case before the court.

The petition argued that the ECI has no authority to implement the SIR, describing it as an ultra vires exercise that exceeds the Commission’s constitutional powers. It further contended that the present timing was inappropriate for carrying out such a revision and that the procedure could lead to the exclusion of eligible voters and the inclusion of ineligible names in the rolls.

“The implementation of the SIR in its current form poses a grave risk of disenfranchising lakhs of voters in Tamil Nadu,” the petition said, urging the Supreme Court to stay the process.

The case is expected to come up for hearing before the apex court on November 6 or 7, the party said, adding that a copy of the petition had been attached to the statement.

Meanwhile, while speaking at a marriage function of Dharmapuri DMK MP A Mani’s son, CM Stalin accused AIADMK general secretary ‘Edappadi’ K Palaniswami of adopting a ‘double standard’ on the issue of Systematic Investigation and Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, as he is scared of the BJP.

“Although Palaniswami has cast doubt on the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) actions, he lacks the courage to criticise ECI openly, out of fear for the BJP. The AIADMK and a few other parties skipped the all-party meeting convened by DMK against SIR, but have expressed their reservation with the ECI,” he said, while speaking at the marriage function of Dharmapuri DMK MP A Mani’s son in Dharmapuri.

Claiming that the BJP’s conspiracies wouldn’t succeed in Tamil Nadu, Stalin accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of delivering a hateful speech against Tamil Nadu in Bihar.

“It is regrettable that the Prime Minister has enacted a drama for vote bank politics in Bihar. But those people from Bihar are proud of how Tamil Nadu has provided them with opportunities and improved their standard of living,” he said.

Taking a further dig, Stalin dared Modi to repeat the same hatred speech in Tamil Nadu. “Will he come to Tamil Nadu and say the same remarks that he made in Bihar? Does he have the guts?” he asked.

Accusing the ECI of planning a malicious and politically motivated exercise through SIR to manipulate the state’s electoral rolls ahead of the assembly polls, Stalin said the SIR should be conducted by giving adequate time and in a tension-free situation. Even though the case is before the apex court, the ECI is rushing the process, with just a few more months left for polls, as it is a trick to remove genuine voters. The DMK was among the first to voice its opposition, when SIR was taken up in Bihar,” he said.

Exuding confidence that DMK will win the 2026 assembly polls to form government by defeating conspiracies and falsehoods, the Chief Minister said the DMK retrieved Tamil Nadu from slave AIADMK in 2021 polls, while the 2026 assembly polls will be one to protect the state from the BJP-AIADMK alliance.

The Chief Minister also inspected a new bus terminus being developed through public private partnership (PPP) model at Rs 39.14 crore and construction of SIPCOT industrial Park in Dharmapuri.