Overview
- The Election Commission of India replied to an RTI on October 16 by declining to disclose the name or version of the software used in the Special Intensive Revision and invoked RTI exemptions for commercial confidence and safety.
- The ECI also said no new software was procured for SIR and reiterated that local Electoral Registration Officers are the statutory authority for adding or removing voters.
- Opposition leaders, led by the Congress, have said the nondisclosure suggests centralised manipulation of rolls and renewed calls for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation and suspension of the SIR.
- Following detection of anomalies after the SIR, the ECI ordered mandatory scrutiny of all post‑SIR additions, deletions and edits in Uttar Pradesh, banned computer assistants from feeding forms, and directed Booth Level Officers to digitise physical forms.
- Reporting has documented internal dissents by two election commissioners and public disclosures tying Tata Consultancy Services to ECINET, and the RTI applicant may appeal the ECI response, which could trigger further legal or oversight review.