Ranchi: Protests against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls continued in the city on Friday, with several student and youth organisations, women’s groups and trade unions marching from Ranchi University gate to Albert Ekka Chowk to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the exercise, “vote theft” and related issues.The demonstration, held on an all-India call by ‘People Against SIR’, saw participation from Citu, Jharkhand State Kisan Sabha, All India Lawyers Association, AISA, SFI and SUCI, among others. Protesters carried banners reading, “Har shahar Jantar Mantar, virodh hamara adhikar” (every town is now Jantar Mantar of Delhi, we have the right to protest), and demanded that Kumar be removed and prosecuted.Citu member Prakash Viplav said Election Commission should stop the SIR and ensure that no genuine voter is deprived of voting rights. Organisers claimed similar protests were held in at least a dozen districts and said the campaign would continue until EC answers concerns over transparency, alleged voter deletion and the claims and objections process in the state.The agitation comes amid a series of protests in Jharkhand over the SIR exercise. Congress workers had also marched to the CEO’s office in Dhurwa earlier this month, while RJD and AISA held separate protests seeking Kumar’s resignation and rollback of SIR. Earlier, Ranchi had emerged among urban seats with a high share of voters marked absent or untraceable during door-to-door verification, while subsequent SIR hearings saw long queues, confusion and anxious voters trying to secure their names on the final roll.
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