Union, State governments ‘controlling’ BLOs to manipulate SIR process, alleges TVK

CHENNAI: Accusing both the Union and State governments of "systematically taking control" of Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to influence the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) on Friday staged a statewide protest demanding transparency in the ongoing voter verification exercise.

Addressing the gathering on Sivananda Salai here, TVK's general secretary for election campaign management, Aadhav Arjuna, charged that the SIR process had been turned into a political tool. He alleged that BLOs were being directed by ruling party functionaries and were working in tandem with DMK district-level office-bearers.

"Today, both the State and Union governments have taken BLOs into their hands and are deciding which voters should receive the SIR forms. In several places, BLOs are being made to sit aside while DMK functionaries themselves visit households. What greater injustice can there be?" he said, adding that TVK cadres were forced to walk nearly 8–10 km due to repeated restrictions imposed on the protest venue.

He accused the DMK of orchestrating ‘deliberate confusion’ over SIR while failing to raise the issue in the Assembly. "If the DMK was genuinely concerned, why didn't they bring a resolution against SIR in the Assembly? They merely watched silently and are now pretending to oppose it outside, " he said.

Aadhav claimed that TVK's awareness videos on SIR had reached nearly three crore people, something the Election Commission should have done in the first place. "We are not opposing SIR. We only demand that public awareness must precede such an exercise. Without proper communication, voters risk losing essential documents linked to their voter ID, " he cautioned.

Following him, TVK general secretary N Anand said large-scale deletion and addition of names under SIR had created widespread fear among citizens.

“Names are being removed without prior notice. At the same time, bogus voters are being added. This is a clear political conspiracy designed to benefit the ruling party,” he alleged.

The TVK leader urged the Election Commission of India to conduct a thorough review, mandate door-to-door visits by officials, prevent political intimidation of BLOs, and ensure a ‘flawless, transparent’ voters' list.

“If these concerns are ignored, our protests will not stop. We are Thalapathy's cadre. In 2026, Tamil Nadu will witness a change,” he declared.

TVK leaders reaffirmed that the party would monitor whether every first-time voter receives SIR forms and ensure no genuine voter is excluded.

Similar protests were held simultaneously in Madurai, Tiruchy and Coimbatore, drawing large participation from TVK cadres and the public.