Economist Parakala Prabhaka during a protest against SIR at Lower Tank Bund in Hyderabad on Saturday
Hyderabad: Sitting on the edge of Lower Tank Bund stretch, holding the national flag, 63-year-old Suvamoy Sen had brought along more than just a symbol. Sen was among the 250-300 citizens, civil society members and students who gathered near the Makhdoom Mohiuddin statue on Saturday evening to form a human chain, protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and demand the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar. A Hyderabad resident since 2002, Sen said his family’s own experience had prompted him to join the protest.
“I brought the flag my father used in the Independence movement, when he fought against the British,” he said. Throughout the protest, participants raised several slogans, including “Gyanesh Kumar resign,” as they held hands to form a human chain along the lane. Organised by the newly formed People Against SIR alliance, the protest was titled ‘Demanding rollback of SIR and resignation of CEC. Groups including AIPM, RSV and NAPM, along with student organisations such as SFI and AISA, took part. The lanes along Lower Tank Bund were packed with people, many of them elders attending a protest for the first time. “My daughter-in-law’s name was dropped from the rolls in Hyderabad, and she received a notice. People Against SIR alliance is an all-India platform and civil society coalition recently formed to oppose the SIR. It comprises farmers’ organisations, trade and workers’ unions, student groups, women’s organisations and groups representing Dalits, Adivasis, minorities, persons with disabilities and transgender people.
Meanwhile, Iran Nayak of KNF Foundation, which works with the transgender community, said that more than 20,000 persons with disabilities in Telangana had received notices, according to data seen with BLOs.
Addressing the gathering, economist Parakala Prabhakar said, “Every person who questions and dissents is a challenge to this autocratic govt. He demanded that the SIR be scrapped, all eligible voters be restored to the rolls, and that the ECI be reconstituted through a transparent selection process.