Bengaluru
oi-Gaurav Sharma
Nearly a crore voters across Karnataka were removed from the voting list after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The Chief Electoral Officer’s (CEO) office released the final voters’ list on Tuesday.
As per the final list, there will be 4.55 crore registered voters in the state after the revision. Around 99.32 lakh voters have been removed from the list.
Karnataka’s final voter list includes 4.55 crore voters after removing 99.32 lakh during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. Opposition parties criticize the exercise, leading Rahul Gandhi to file a PIL, while the Election Commission defends its unanimous decisions.
There are around 2.25 crore male voters and 2.29 crore female voters in the revised list. Over 6.83 lakh voters fall under the category of 18-19 years whereas more than 3.92 lakh voters are aged above 85.
DK Shivakumar Says Karnataka Government Will Ensure Voter Protection
Speaking about the release of the final list, State Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said the state government and Congress will ensure the protection of the voters.
“It is the responsibility of the govt and the party to ensure voters’ protection,” he added.
However, the exercise has been heavily criticised by Congress and other opposition parties.
Rahul Gandhi Files PIL Against SIR Exercise
Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi has filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) at the Supreme Court seeking to stop the nationwide SIR exercise and has also sought suspension of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar citing irregularities.
Several leaders from the INDIA bloc have also raised the issue before the apex court. The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Election Commission to give its response.
Election Commission Defends SIR Exercise
In an affidavit to the Supreme Court on Monday, the Election Commission defended the exercise and said all the decisions regarding the SIR were made unanimously by the three-member commission.
The poll body denied the allegations of amendment of Form 6, which is used to register voters.
The commission said in its 248-page counter-affidavit that the SIR orders passed on June 24, 2025, October 27, 2025, and May 14, 2026 are unanimous decisions taken under Article 324 of the Constitution and Section 18 of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023.
“An attempt to cast aspersions against the Election Commission is unfortunate.”
