IndiaPosted at: Oct 8 2026 2:31PM


INDIA Bloc to meet President Murmu on Friday, escalates fight over SIR and Election Commission

New Delhi, Oct 8 (UNI) The opposition INDIA bloc is set to meet President Droupadi Murmu on Friday, October 9, to formally raise its concerns over the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI), the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and its demand for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, marking a further escalation in its confrontation with the poll panel.
Rashtrapati Bhavan has agreed to receive a delegation of the opposition alliance after the INDIA bloc sought an appointment between October 7 and 9. The President’s Secretariat asked the opposition to limit the delegation to 10 members instead of the 15-member team initially proposed, a condition accepted by the alliance.
The meeting comes amid mounting political tensions in the national capital, where opposition MPs have repeatedly attempted to reach the Election Commission headquarters and have demanded Kumar’s resignation over the SIR exercise and other issues concerning the electoral rolls.
The delegation is expected to include Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav and Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee, among other senior opposition leaders. Banerjee arrived in Delhi on Thursday as opposition parties stepped up their mobilisation against the electoral-roll revision exercise and what they describe as growing institutional concerns over the functioning of the Election Commission.
The decision to approach President Murmu was taken at an INDIA bloc meeting on September 30 following intensifying differences between opposition parties and the Election Commission over SIR. The alliance subsequently wrote to the President seeking an appointment to place before her its concerns relating to electoral rolls, the functioning of the poll panel and what it has described as serious institutional and procedural issues surrounding the revision of voter lists.
The proposed meeting assumes greater significance following a series of opposition protests in Delhi this week. On October 6, opposition MPs led by Rahul Gandhi and joined by senior leaders, including Kharge, Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress leaders, marched towards the Election Commission headquarters demanding withdrawal of SIR and the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar. The march was stopped by police, following which several opposition leaders staged a prolonged sit-in near Akashvani Bhavan and were subsequently detained.
The confrontation continued on October 7, when Gandhi and other opposition lawmakers were again detained during protests in Delhi. The INDIA bloc has maintained that its campaign is intended to protect the integrity of electoral rolls and ensure that no eligible voter is excluded from the democratic process.
During the October 6 protest, Gandhi questioned the Election Commission’s refusal to meet the opposition delegation, asking, “Why is the CEC not meeting us? Why are they stopping us? We represent the people.”
SIR has emerged as the central issue in the opposition’s campaign against the Election Commission. INDIA bloc parties have alleged that the revision process could lead to the deletion or exclusion of large numbers of eligible voters and have demanded greater transparency in the preparation and revision of electoral rolls. They have also questioned the functioning of the Commission under Kumar and stepped up their demand for his resignation.
The Election Commission, however, has rejected allegations of political bias and maintained that its decisions relating to SIR have been taken in accordance with the law. The poll panel has also maintained that decisions of the Commission were unanimous among all three Election Commissioners.
The dispute over electoral-roll revision has meanwhile expanded beyond the Election Commission, spilling into Parliament, the courts and the streets and becoming a wider political and institutional confrontation between the opposition and the poll panel.
The meeting with the President is not expected to alter the constitutional division of responsibilities between the President and the Election Commission. Instead, the INDIA bloc is likely to use the opportunity to formally place its objections, demands and supporting material before Murmu and seek attention to what it considers serious concerns regarding electoral administration.
The delegation is also expected to reiterate the opposition’s demand for action against Kumar. Opposition parties have been seeking his resignation amid their continuing protests, while a separate parliamentary initiative concerning the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner has emerged as part of the broader political dispute.
Friday’s meeting will therefore provide the opposition with a formal constitutional forum to present its concerns after repeated attempts to directly meet the Election Commission resulted in confrontations with the authorities in Delhi. It also comes as the INDIA bloc seeks to sustain a coordinated campaign on SIR and electoral-roll issues despite differences among some of its constituent parties on other political matters.
For the opposition, the meeting will be an opportunity to place before the President its objections to the manner in which SIR is being implemented and its demand for greater accountability within the Election Commission. For the government and the poll panel, the controversy remains an issue to be addressed within the existing constitutional and statutory framework governing electoral administration.
The INDIA bloc’s meeting with Murmu on Friday is consequently likely to be closely watched as the opposition seeks to take its campaign against SIR and the Election Commission beyond street protests and parliamentary interventions and place it formally before the President of India. UNI SKA AAB
Tags: #INDIA Bloc to meet President Murmu on Friday# escalates fight over SIR and Election Commission
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