New Delhi, October 10, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Former Indian diplomat Bhaswati Mukherjee has defended the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, saying a “distorted narrative” was being circulated about the exercise and its implications for Indian democracy.
Mukherjee, one of the signatories to an open letter issued on Saturday by at least 124 former civil servants with direct or indirect experience in India’s electoral process, said the initiative was intended to counter claims that democracy was under threat and that elections had been compromised.
Speaking to IANS, she said the former civil servants wanted to address allegations of “vote chori”, claims that India was no longer a functioning democracy, and demands for the cancellation of elections held over the past two years.
“We were motivated by a desire to make the people of India understand that a distorted narrative was being spread—that India’s democracy is in danger, that there has been ‘vote chori’, that we are not a democracy and are like a banana republic,” Mukherjee said.
She argued that revising electoral rolls was a legitimate exercise undertaken by a constitutional body to keep voter lists updated. She cited deaths, migration, changes in nationality and the addition of new eligible voters as reasons for reviewing electoral records.
Mukherjee Defends Electoral Roll Revision
Addressing concerns surrounding the SIR process, Mukherjee said citizens should help one another navigate the exercise, particularly those who were unfamiliar with technology.
She cautioned against creating panic or giving the impression that irregularities were necessarily taking place. She also said that genuine voters whose names were omitted could seek re-enrolment on the electoral rolls.
Mukherjee raised the issue of alleged illegal infiltration, particularly in West Bengal, her home state. She claimed that some people who had entered from Bangladesh had obtained false Aadhaar cards and were attempting to vote. These claims were presented as her assessment of the issue.
Describing India as a thriving democracy despite the political differences within the country, she urged people to avoid spreading what she characterised as false narratives.
“We have no agenda, we just want to set the record of our country so that our reputation of a flourishing democracy does not get destroyed or distorted,” she said, adding that she saw no sinister motive behind the voter-roll revision exercise.
Former Civil Servants Reject ‘Rigged’ Claims Without Evidence
The open letter also criticised the use of the word “rigged” without supporting evidence, according to the report.
Mukherjee maintained that India’s electoral system was respected internationally and cited the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) as part of her argument.
She also recalled India’s assistance to other countries seeking expertise on conducting elections, establishing electoral commissions and understanding the constitutional framework governing election authorities.
On demands for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Mukherjee said the process for removing an Election Commissioner was constitutionally prescribed and should not be pursued through street violence or mob pressure.
“The only way to remove an Election Commissioner is through impeachment in Parliament, not through mobocracy or violence on the streets,” she said.
She warned that such political confrontation could harm the country.
Opposition, CJP Protest Against SIR
The remarks come amid protests by opposition parties and the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which have demanded Kumar’s resignation over alleged irregularities in the SIR process.
The controversy has intensified the political debate over electoral-roll revisions, voter inclusion and the independence of constitutional institutions.
While critics have raised concerns about the revision exercise, Mukherjee and the other signatories have argued that electoral rolls must be updated and that allegations of widespread electoral wrongdoing should not be made without evidence.
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