DMK is protesting against SIR to hide failure of its government: Nirmala Sitharaman

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) is protesting against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to hide the failure of its government, and to divert the attention of the public, Union Finance Minister and BJP leader Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday.

Addressing the media, Ms. Sitharaman said the SIR was carried out 10 times before 2000, and then in 2002, 2003, and 2004. “The DMK was an ally of the Congress [in 2004], and was a part of the Central government during some of these periods. Then, why is it protesting against the SIR now? The Chief Minister [M.K. Stalin] is saying the SIR will snatch the voting rights of the people. No one will be deprived of their voting rights,” she said.

The Union Minister said that as per the Constitution, it is mandatory for the EC to carry out the SIR before every election. She wondered if the DMK was protesting because it did not want the names of the dead and those who had permanently moved out of the State to be removed from the rolls. “Does it not want to include the names of Tamilians who have returned to the State and settled here? The DMK has failed in governance, and the public continue to face several problems. It has taken up the issue of SIR to divert the attention of the people. This is a typical strategy of the DMK,” she said.

“The SIR is being carried out with the idea of ‘one person, one vote’. The DMK and the Congress are trying to undermine the Election Commission,” she alleged.

When asked why the SIR was being taken up now, with the Assembly election due to be held next year, she wondered why the DMK did not ask for the SIR earlier.