Assam excluded from pan-India SIR

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission excluded Assam from the second phase of the nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The state is awaiting an assembly election soon. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar justified the exclusion, saying the Assam issue was a matter still under the purview of the court.

There are special provisions in the Citizenship Act for Assam. The citizenship verification process being conducted under the supervision of the Supreme Court needs to be completed in the state. The National Register of Citizens has not been finalised yet. In this situation, Gyanesh Kumar clarified that it is not possible to conduct SIR in Assam at this time.

Activist Yogendra Yadav expressed surprise at the decision. SIR will also be conducted in Andaman and Nicobar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh in the second phase. A total of 51 crore voters are in the current list in 12 places.

While responding to the question of the possibility of strong protests in West Bengal, Gyanesh Kumar said that the state is responsible for cooperating with the commission officials. Apart from Assam, assembly elections are scheduled to be held in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry next year.

The Election Commission explained that the SIR process was carried out a total of 8 times in the country from 1951 to 2004. The last time was 21 years ago, in the period 2002-04. This time, the first phase of the SIR process was completed in Bihar. The Chief Election Commissioner claimed that not a single appeal was received. 1200 voters will be registered in a polling station.

12 documents that will be accepted:

1. Aadhaar Card

2. Passport

3. Birth Certificate

4. Matriculation Certificate

5. Permanent Residence Certificate

6. Identity Card of Central and State Government Employees and Pension Payment Order of Pensioners

7. Government Identity Cards

8. OBC, SC/ST Certificate

9. Forest Rights Certificate

10. National Register of Citizens

11. Land/House Allotment Certificate

12. Family Register issued by the Government and Local Bodies