Chennai, 23 Oct (H.S.): Representatives of several political parties, including the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), walked out of a meeting convened by Tamil Nadu Chief Electoral Officer Archana Patnaik on Friday, protesting alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The meeting was called to discuss preparations for the Special Summary Revision (SSR), scheduled to begin across Tamil Nadu on November 12. The exercise will give eligible voters an opportunity to apply for the inclusion of their names in the electoral rolls.

Representatives of the DMK, Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), DMDK and Left parties joined the walkout. Their protest was directed against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the conduct of the earlier intensive revision.

The protesting parties objected to the removal of around 97 lakh voter entries from Tamil Nadu’s electoral rolls during the SIR. They raised concerns about the exercise before leaving the meeting, bringing their objections to the centre of discussions ahead of the forthcoming revision.

Representatives of the AIADMK and BJP participated in the meeting.

The walkout highlighted differences among political parties over the electoral roll revision process, with the deletions emerging as the principal point of contention. While Friday’s meeting concerned the forthcoming summary revision, the protesting parties focused on alleged irregularities in the previous intensive exercise.

The November 12 exercise will provide a fresh opportunity for eligible voters whose names are absent from the rolls to seek registration. The distinction between the two exercises is significant: the parties’ objections concerned deletions during the SIR, while the meeting was convened ahead of the SSR.

The protest brought the controversy surrounding the earlier revision into the preparatory meeting, even as electoral authorities sought to discuss the next exercise aimed at enabling eligible citizens to secure their place on Tamil Nadu’s voter lists.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman