Prakash Raj calls for reversal of electoral roll revision

Actor and political activist Prakash Raj has called for the scrapping of India’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and the restoration of the previous voters list. Speaking at a press conference in Hyderabad on Saturday, Raj said the process had resulted in 13 crore deletions that should be reversed. He made the demand while discussing what he described as lapses in the revision exercise.

Raj said an investigation he conducted across 100 polling booths in 23 Karnataka districts had found a large number of voters allegedly removed from the rolls arbitrarily. He also called for the Election Commission’s constitutional framework to be changed. Specifically, he demanded the reversal of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, and the removal of judicial immunity granted to the Chief Election Commissioner.

Raj asked the Supreme Court to immediately obtain all files from the Election Commission since 2023 and examine them. During the press conference, he questioned whether citizens should determine who holds power or whether authorities should decide who is eligible to vote. He further said poor people, Adivasi communities and women were affected by the ongoing revision.

The source material did not include a response from the Election Commission or the government to his demands. The comments came amid wider concerns referenced in the report about the conduct of the Special Intensive Revision, including notices issued to voters in Telangana and the appearance of pre-printed Form 7 documents.