A state-level protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is being held at Bengaluru’s Freedom Park, where organisers have also convened a public hearing for people who say they have been affected by the process. The event was reported on October 8 by Prajavani and is being organised by a coalition of secular parties and public-interest organisations opposed to the revision exercise.
According to the organisers, three retired Supreme Court judges will hear the grievances of people affected by the SIR process at the Janata Nyayalaya, or public court, being held alongside the demonstration. The programme is intended to provide a platform for people to present their problems before the retired judges and representatives of the organising coalition.
Writer Devanur Mahadeva, actor and social activist Prakash Raj, economist Parakala Prabhakar, YouTuber Dhruv Rathee and leaders of the Cockroach Janata Party, including Abhijit Dipke, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, were listed among those expected to participate. The report also said that Zubair shared the stage with Dipke and Rathee during the programme.
The demonstration has drawn members of the public, activists, private-school teachers, the Aam Aadmi Party and left-leaning student organisations, the report said. Organisers described the gathering as a peaceful protest and said people were arriving from different parts of Karnataka. The venue was reported to be nearly full, with protest songs being performed from the stage.
Dipke said the protest was a way for citizens to reclaim democratic space, according to the report. The organisers also said they would not resort to violence and that the demonstration would remain peaceful. These statements came as the coalition accused opponents of attempting to create tension around the protest; the report did not provide independent confirmation of that allegation.
The Bengaluru event is part of a wider political and civic mobilisation around the electoral-roll revision process. Separately, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president B.K. Hariprasad and Congress workers were reported to have held a protest outside the KPCC headquarters, alleging irregularities in the SIR process and demanding the resignation of Chief Electoral Officer Gyanesh Kumar.
The Freedom Park gathering is scheduled to continue with the public hearing and speeches by participating organisations and public figures. The immediate focus of the organisers is the recording of grievances from people who say they have been affected by the revision process and the presentation of those concerns at the state-level event.
