Hyderabad

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy called upon Congress leaders and cadre to create widespread awareness on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, warning that the exercise could adversely affect the poor, migrants, tribals, Dalits, minority and women voters, if proper vigilance was not maintained.

Addressing the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) meeting at Gandhi Bhavan on Friday, the Chief Minister said it was encouraging that party leaders had understood the seriousness of the issue and the possible difficulties that common people and Congress workers could face because of the SIR process.

“We must develop complete awareness on the problems arising out of SIR and the solutions needed to address them,” he told the meeting, attended by AICC in-charge of Telangana Meenakshi Natarajan, TPCC president Mahesh Goud and other senior leaders.

Mr. Reddy recalled that the Congress had successfully enrolled 45 lakh digital memberships within 90 days in the past through booth enrollers. He said leaders who played a key role in the membership drive should now be utilised effectively for the SIR exercise as well.

The Chief Minister announced that in-charges would be appointed for all 119 Assembly constituencies and 17 Lok Sabha constituencies to monitor the process closely and ensure that not even a single genuine vote was deleted. Special focus would also be placed on Hyderabad, where Rajya Sabha members and MLCs would be assigned responsibilities for the city’s 15 Assembly constituencies.

He stressed that all ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, and corporation chairpersons must actively participate in party programmes and dedicate one full day every 10 days exclusively for party activities.

3 days per month

Stating that he too would regularly meet party workers at the grassroots level, he said that he would reserve three days every month for party activities and organisational strengthening.

Meanwhile, Mr. Goud alleged that attempts were being made to weaken the secular vote bank through the SIR process. Citing West Bengal as an example, he alleged that nearly 92 lakh votes were removed there while only 31 lakh were re-added. After West Bengal, Telangana and Punjab had become targets of “fascist forces”.