Ex-Union minister RK Singh attacks CEC over SIR, calls for criminal cases against him

New Delhi, Sep 29 (PTI) Former Union minister R K Singh has accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of committing "illegalities" over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, calling upon opposition parties to file criminal cases against him.

Singh, a former Union home secretary who served in the Narendra Modi government for nearly seven years, also criticised the Supreme Court for upholding the SIR. He demanded fresh elections in states where polls were held while appeals against voter deletion were pending.

"Do you want India to remain a democracy? Then you must understand what Gyanesh Kumar, the CEC, and his bosses are doing in the so-called SIR. They are violating the law," Singh said in an open letter that he posted on X on Monday.

His remarks come amid controversy over objections raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi to decisions concerning voter registration and deletion, changes to Form 6 and access to the electoral roll database during the SIR.

Following a meeting of Kumar, Sandhu and Joshi on September 26, the Election Commission asserted that orders relating to the SIR had the unanimous approval of all three Commissioners and announced decisions on several issues flagged by the two Election Commissioners.

Singh questioned who authorised the nationwide exercise. "Another question is -- who took the decision for SIR in the whole country? Was it the full commission; or only Gyanesh Kumar," he said.

He alleged that Kumar added a new appendix to the statutory Form 6 despite opposition from Sandhu and Joshi.

"The majority was against the addition of the new appendix to the form. So the addition of the new appendix was against the decisions of the Commission itself.

"So why was it added? On whose orders? This was illegal," Singh said.

The Election Commission has said the declaration attached to Form 6 for SIR was upheld by the Supreme Court and forms prescribed under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, would be used during non-SIR periods.

Singh also questioned appeals against the inclusion of voters in West Bengal and alleged that centralisation of the electoral roll had undermined the statutory authority of electoral registration officers (EROs).

"The centralisation of the voter list amendment is dangerous. It can be used to cut voters from booths which vote against NDA. Is this what happened?" he said.

Going beyond the opposition's demand for Kumar's removal, Singh said, "The Opposition says that they will impeach Gyanesh Kumar. That is an exercise in futility.

"They just do not have the numbers. If they really want a remedy, they should file criminal cases against Gyanesh Kumar."

He also called upon the opposition parties not to participate in elections until the CEC and Election Commissioners resign, and demanded a return to the earlier selection system involving the prime minister, leader of the opposition (LoP) and a sitting Supreme Court judge. He also sought a return to ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines.

Singh was also sharply critical of the Supreme Court, saying its order upholding the nationwide SIR "was wrong".

"The reputation of the Supreme Court has been besmirched by the judgement on SIR. It is at par in infamy with the judgement upholding the emergency. Hon'ble Judges may please note," he said.

He criticised the court over the pending challenge to the law governing the appointment of Election Commissioners.

"The procrastination on the challenge to the law on selection of Election Commissioners is also sending a bad message about the Supreme Court -- as it is an open and shut case that the Election Commissioners should not be selected by the party in power; but by a neutral selection committee to ensure their neutrality," the former Union minister said.

Singh joined the BJP in 2013 after retiring from the IAS and represented Arrah in the Lok Sabha. He served in the Modi government from 2017 to 2024, including as Union power minister.

He contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election from the same Arrah seat in Bihar and lost to Sudama Prasad of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation or CPI(ML)(L) by a margin of 59,808 votes.

The BJP suspended him for alleged "anti-party activities" in November 2025 following months of differences with the party leadership and issued him a show-cause notice. Singh resigned from the party hours later.