Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
A group of 124 former Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and allied services officers has issued an open letter to the citizens of India, defending the Election Commission (EC) and its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls while questioning allegations of vote rigging made without credible evidence.
The officers said India’s electoral system had evolved significantly from an era marked by booth capturing, ballot box stuffing and electoral violence. They argued that elections today are protected by multiple layers of safeguards, including polling agents, the sealing of electronic voting machines (EVMs), security at strong rooms where machines are stored and verification through Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips.
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Citing the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, the officers said the polls recorded no re-polling and witnessed the highest voter turnout since 1951. They referred to these figures while defending the credibility of the electoral process.
“A system cannot be honest when you win and rigged when you lose,” the officers said, pointing out that the ruling party at the Centre had also lost several state elections under the same Election Commission. They further noted that the party lost its parliamentary majority in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
OFFICERS DEFEND EC’S INDEPENDENCE
The former civil servants also defended the Election Commission’s independence, highlighting its multi-member structure and the institutional safeguards governing its functioning.
While acknowledging that questioning the electoral process was a citizen’s right, they argued that allegations of irregularities needed to be backed by evidence.
“Questioning is every citizen’s right. Proving is the accuser’s duty,” the officers asserted.
Their letter comes amid allegations of electoral irregularities and scrutiny of the Election Commission’s functioning. The officers maintained that concerns about elections should be examined through evidence rather than conclusions drawn solely from political disagreements over results.
WHY THE OFFICERS BACK SIR OF ELECTORAL ROLLS
Defending the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the officers described the exercise as necessary to clean up electoral rolls and improve their accuracy.
Electoral rolls are the official lists of eligible voters used during elections. Their revision is intended to ensure that the lists reflect eligible electors and do not contain entries that should no longer be present, such as those of deceased voters or duplicate registrations.
Citing figures from Bihar, the officers said the revision had identified around 22 lakh deceased voters and seven lakh duplicate entries. They also highlighted the addition of approximately 21.5 lakh new voters.
“An uncleaned roll does not protect the voter. It protects the fraudster,” they said, arguing that maintaining accurate voter lists was essential to electoral integrity.
SIR SAFEGUARDS AND SC SCRUTINY
The officers also highlighted the safeguards available during the SIR exercise, including notices, hearings and appeals. They pointed to the participation of political parties’ booth-level agents as another mechanism for scrutiny.
They further referred to the Supreme Court’s examination of the exercise, stating that the court had prescribed additional safeguards and upheld the Election Commission’s authority to conduct the revision.
The officers cited these provisions to argue that the process had mechanisms through which concerns could be raised and addressed.
‘QUESTION THE SYSTEM, OR ONLY THE RESULT?’
Concluding their argument, the former civil servants urged those questioning election results to consider the outcomes delivered under the same electoral system in different elections.
“If the system you call rigged is the same one that handed you your victories, ask yourself whether it is the system you doubt, or only the result,” they said.
The letter presents a strong defence of the Election Commission and the SIR exercise, with the officers arguing that electoral safeguards, voter-roll accuracy and evidence-based scrutiny should form the basis of any assessment of India’s electoral process.
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
