PANAJI: Goa Forward Party (GFP) chief Vijai Sardesai on Thursday alleged that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Goa resulted in the deliberate deletion of voters, particularly those he described as traditionally anti-BJP, and demanded that the deletions be rolled back.
Sardesai’s remarks came a day after The Indian Express reported that 97 voters in Goa, who had been found eligible by Electoral Registration Officers, were nevertheless missing from the final electoral roll following the SIR process. The report also examined the role of the Election Commission’s centralised ECINet software in the process.
Addressing a press conference, Sardesai claimed that Goa had 11,85,034 registered voters as of October 27, 2025, while the figure stood at 10,67,566 after the final SIR roll was published on February 21, 2026. He put the net reduction at 1,17,468 voters, or about 10.75 per cent of the earlier electorate.
According to Sardesai, the deletions were carried out on grounds officially described as “logical discrepancies” and had deprived eligible citizens of their constitutional right to vote. “What was exposed by The Indian Express is just the tip of the iceberg. In our Fatorda constituency alone, 4,500 votes were deleted through SIR, and across Goa, a total of 1,17,468 votes were deleted to target anti-BJP voters,” he alleged.
Sardesai said the GFP had raised concerns over voter deletions several times, including in the Assembly on January 16, April 14 and May 31, as well as outside the House. He alleged that the use of centralised software had restricted the ability of local election officials to restore eligible voters to the rolls. “Centralised software from Delhi is deciding who will vote and win in 2027, undermining public trust and democratic election campaigns,” Sardesai said.
Sardesai called for the rollback of SIR-related deletions, with exceptions for voters who had died, permanently moved away or acquired foreign citizenship. “Rollback means restoring those who were deliberately cut, while excluding those who passed away, left their homes, or took foreign passports,” he said.
He claimed that genuine voters were facing difficulties even after submitting documents, including valid rental agreements and landlord No Objection Certificates. “Genuine citizens whose documents are complete are experiencing extreme harassment, with valid monthly rental agreements being arbitrarily rejected as invalid,” Sardesai alleged.
He also questioned the demands being made of tenants and new voters, claiming that applicants were being asked to provide old electoral records of their fathers or prove ancestral links to Goa. The Election Commission’s voter services portal currently provides for new voter registration through Form 6, while its SIR portal also allows voters to search the previous SIR electoral roll and submit documents or appeals.
Sardesai claimed that eight emails had been sent to Goa Chief Electoral Officer Sanjay Goel seeking corrective action, but that no response was received. He argued that the issue went beyond individual voter deletions and could affect public confidence in the electoral process ahead of the 2027 Goa Assembly elections. “If 10% of voters are deleted in advance, election campaigns lose their purpose,” Sardesai said, while referring to similar voter-roll controversies in other states.
Sardesai also welcomed Congress general secretary K C Venugopal’s reported call for opposition parties to unite in Goa. “Venugopal's statement that everyone should unite is a welcome development representing official Congress high command intent, and we are ready to make any sacrifice,” he said. “Our singular focus is defeating the BJP and making Goa BJP-free, and we are ready to take necessary calls post-Anant Chaturdashi,” Sardesai added.
When asked whether the GFP would need a formal invitation for an alliance, Sardesai said this was unnecessary. “There is no need to extend a formal invitation because they have already publicly stated their readiness to form a broad alliance, and we are ready to unite to defeat the ruling party,” he said.
Sardesai also referred to Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the SIR exercise in Bihar, saying the research presented by Gandhi on December 9, 2025 had been vindicated by the latest developments.
