CHENNAI: Ruling TVK, principal opposition DMK and their allies walked out of an all-party meeting on the special summary revision (SSR) of electoral rolls at the Secretariat on Friday, protesting against the Election Commission’s handling of the earlier special intensive revision (SIR) exercise. AIADMK and BJP, however, stayed on for the meeting chaired by chief electoral officer Archana Patnaik.Electricity minister C T R Nirmal Kumar said TVK had been strongly objecting to the SIR from the beginning. Several political parties were now expressing the same view and protesting across the nation. “We have insisted that the ECI rectify the irregularities committed during the SIR exercise to ensure free and fair elections. Without addressing this issue, the special summary revision should not be taken up,” Nirmal Kumar told reporters at the secretariat after walking out of the meeting.He said that the chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar should resign, taking responsibility for the irregularities in the SIR exercise.DMK legal wing state joint secretary I Paranthaman, along with the party’s organisational deputy secretary S Austin, attended the meeting and aired their views on the SIR irregularities before walking out. “We demanded an explanation of the steps the ECI would take to enrol the 74 lakh voters who were removed from the electoral rolls during the SIR in the state and when the process would begin. But there was no response from the authorities,” Paranthaman said.He said DMK had put forth its views on behalf of the people before walking out of the meeting to register its protest. He noted that the party had passed a resolution demanding the immediate removal of Gyanesh Kumar over irregularities that had resulted in the removal of over 13 voters across the country. The party would continue its protest and was also planning to meet the President to submit a memorandum on the issue. Representatives of CPI, CPM, VCK, DMDK, AAP and Congress also walked out the meeting, demanding the rollback of SIR and resignation of Gyanesh Kuamar.Describing the political parties’ walkout as their “democratic right”, former AIADMK minister D Jayakumar said parties backed EVMs when election results favoured them but criticised the same system when the results went against their interests. He, however, said AIADMK was not defending any individual, including Gyanesh Kumar, but was insisting that the ECI take appropriate measures to include the 52 lakh voters removed on the grounds of having shifted residence, four lakh removed due to duplicate entries, and 13 lakh categorised as permanently shifted.BJP and National People’s Party attended the meeting, while representatives of BSP did not turn up for the meeting.
