Members of CPI(M), CPI and pro-people organisations staged a demonstration in Hubballi on Tuesday urging the State government to ensure that the voting rights of everyone are protected during the forthcoming SIR (Special Intensive Revision) of electoral rolls.

In the demonstration staged under the aegis of Janapara Sanghatanegala Vedike and district committees of CPI(M) and CPI, the protestors expressed concern over voters being left out during the process of matching and mapping and said that more problems are likely to arise after the start of SIR on June 30 in the State.

Addressing the protestors, Dharwad district secretary of CPI(M) Mahesh Pattar said that in the SIR conducted so far, barring the State of West Bengal, the yardstick of logical discrepancy has not been applied in any of the States.

“However, in Karnataka, logical discrepancy is being applied indicating the possibility of deletion of specific number of voters from specific constituencies. As mistakes in spellings, age difference between voters and parents, inter-caste couples, voters with over six children are likely to be affected by this yardstick ultimately leading to being removed from the voters list,” he said.

He said that the NDA-led Union government previously unsuccessfully made an attempt to implement CAA and NRC in the country and now, it is misusing the Election Commission of India to continue the implementation of its communal ideology.

The protestors subsequently submitted a memorandum addressed to the Chief Minister to the taluk officials.

In the memorandum, the Left parties and pro-people organisations have urged the State government to ensure that no voter name is deleted for want of documents and that it should simplify rules to issue various records mentioned in the guidelines of ECI.

The State government should request the ECI not to implement logical discrepancy during SIR in the State. It should also urge the ECI to release voters list in computer readable format. This apart, the State government should set up voter service centres to help the general public, they said in the memorandum.