Ex-Election Chief Ashok Lavasa Labels Current Voter Roll Revision Technically Biased

Former Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa has called the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls an unfair exercise being imposed on millions of people, even as he acknowledged that the judiciary has validated the process and the government has maintained that it is legally sound. Speaking at the Jagdeep Singh Chhokar Memorial Lecture organised by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) on Thursday, Lavasa drew a sharp distinction between the legality of the exercise and its fairness. "Of course it is legal. But is it fair? That is the question.

Because that is what justice is all about," Lavasa said, framing his critique not as a challenge to the legal validity of the SIR process but as a broader concern about whether the exercise meets standards of procedural fairness and equity for the citizens it affects. Lavasa questioned the rationale behind the deletion of approximately 13 crore names from the electoral rolls as part of the SIR exercise, raising concerns about whether adequate efforts were being made to ensure that the process did not alienate voters in the course of its implementation. His remarks suggest concern that the scale of the deletions, involving a substantial portion of the electorate, may not have been accompanied by sufficiently robust safeguards to prevent the wrongful or unintended exclusion of eligible voters from the rolls.

Expanding on his critique, Lavasa observed that statutory institutions, constitutional bodies, and governments increasingly appear to operate on the principle that any action is justified simply because it falls within the bounds of legal permissibility. He described this as a troubling trend, arguing that the notion of "might is right" is an outdated concept that should not guide the functioning of democratic institutions. According to Lavasa, institutions entrusted with upholding the law carry a responsibility that extends beyond mere legal compliance, requiring them to also honor the underlying spirit and intent of the laws they are tasked with enforcing.

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Lavasa further argued that justice cannot be reduced to the mechanical enforcement of legal provisions alone, but must also involve a genuine commitment to protecting the broader spirit of those provisions, particularly when the rights and interests of ordinary citizens are at stake. His remarks reflect a broader concern, echoed by various civil society organisations and democratic accountability advocates, regarding the potential impact of large-scale electoral roll revisions on voter access and representation.

As a former Election Commissioner, Lavasa's comments carry particular weight given his direct experience with the institutional processes governing India's electoral system. His critique adds to an ongoing public debate surrounding the SIR exercise, with questions about its execution and impact likely to continue drawing scrutiny from political parties, civil society groups, and election watchdog organisations such as the ADR, particularly as the process continues to affect voter rolls across multiple states in the lead-up to future elections.

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