‘EC under no pressure on SIR’, says Rajasthan CEO Naveen Mahajan; 56% forms digitised

The Election Commission is facing constant accusations regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

- ARVIND PALAWAT

Opposition parties allege that the Election Commission is working under pressure from the BJP. The SIR process is underway in the state as well, and the work is being completed at a rapid pace. The Daily Guardian conducted an exclusive interview with Chief Electoral Officer Naveen Mahajan on the SIR issue. He candidly answered various questions, ranging from the allegations against the Election Commission tothe SIR. Here are the edited excerpts from the interview:

Question: How happy are you with the pace of SIR work in the state?

Answer: The Special Intensive Revision is progressing very well in Rajasthan. Our team of over 54,000 booth-level officers and nearly 200,000 officers and employeesare engaged in completing this task. There are a total of 5.46 crore voters in the state. Of these, BLOs have completed the counting forms for over 3 crore voters and digitized them on the system, meaning we have completed 56% of the work.

Question: How challenging is it to monitor SIR work in each assembly constituency?