SIR 2026 / Dharmendra Pradhan Slams Congress Over Karnataka SIR Exercise

Bhubaneswar, Oct 29: Sambalpur MP and former Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday criticised the Congress over its stand on electoral roll revisions, alleging political inconsistency in the party's response to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise conducted in Karnataka.

In a post on X, Pradhan praised the Election Commission of India (ECI) for undertaking systematic verification of electoral rolls across the country despite criticism from Opposition parties.

SIR exercise in Karnataka has exposed the political inconsistency of @INCIndia. The Election Commission of India deserves commendation for its efforts to strengthen electoral rolls across the country through systematic verification despite being unfairly targeted by the entire opposition. In Congress-ruled Karnataka, the final electoral roll records a reduction of nearly 1 crore electors from the pre-SIR roll following verification by the state election machinery, including EROs, AEROs and BLOs. This is sheer hypocrisy! So, Rahul Gandhi, now will you accuse your own government’s machinery of wrongdoing or admit that electoral roll revision is a legitimate exercise to safeguard democracy? You cannot question the ECI when the outcome suits your politics and stay silent when the same process is implemented under your own government. Such selective criticism of electoral process based on the electoral outcome is deeply shameful yet entirely consistent with Congress's record. The problem is not the process. The problem is that Congress cannot decide whether to trust it or discredit it based on political convenience.

— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) October 29, 2026

Cites Karnataka Exercise

Referring to the SIR exercise in Congress-ruled Karnataka, Pradhan claimed that the final electoral roll recorded a reduction of nearly one crore electors compared with the pre-revision roll following verification by election machinery, including Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) and Booth Level Officers (BLOs).

He termed the development as an example of "hypocrisy" and questioned the Congress leadership over its criticism of similar exercises elsewhere.
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Targets Rahul Gandhi

Addressing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Pradhan asked whether the party would question the actions of officials working under a Congress government or accept electoral roll revision as a legitimate democratic exercise.

"The problem is not the process. The problem is that Congress cannot decide whether to trust it or discredit it based on political convenience," he said.

The Sambalpur MP further alleged that the Congress questions the Election Commission only when outcomes do not suit its political interests, while remaining silent when similar processes are carried out in States governed by the party.