Indian Election Commissioners File 14 Objections Over Voter Database

Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi filed 14 formal objections over a 10-month period against decisions made by the Election Commission of India (ECI). The disputes center on the centralization of the electoral roll database through the ERONET and ECINet systems, which the commissioners argue restricted the statutory powers of state-level officials. In Goa, software limitations reportedly prevented the inclusion of 97 eligible voters because the system lacked a rollback option.

Additional conflicts involve the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process and changes to voter registration Form 6, which Sukhbir Singh Sandhu described as "unauthorised and illegal." Critics and media reports suggest the SIR process shifted the burden of proof onto voters, contributing to the deletion of millions of names, including approximately 27 lakh in West Bengal.

The ECI maintains that these objections are part of a normal decision-making process and asserts that all final official decisions over the past year were unanimous. While the Bharatiya Janata Party characterized the disagreements as a hallmark of democracy, opposition parties have called for the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner and Supreme Court intervention. Simultaneously, the Supreme Court of India has referred a legal challenge regarding the 2023 Act governing the appointment of commission members to a Constitution bench.