Jana Sena Party requests ECI to initiate SIR in Andhra Pradesh

A delegation of the Jana Sena Party (JSP) comprising E. Sambasiva Pratap Kumar and R.M.V. Sumanth met Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi in New Delhi on Thursday (January 1, 2026) evening and requested them to initiate the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Andhra Pradesh (A.P.) at the earliest.

They expressed confidence that SIR would make the electoral rolls comprehensive, inclusive, and free from errors and enable every eligible citizen, particularly the first-time voters and those residing in underserved or remote areas to participate in the democratic process.

Further, the JSP leaders said the voting rights of migrant workers and urban employees was of central concern (to JSP), noting that these citizens were practically excluded from the electoral process of their hometowns. “The EC should take the lead in designing remote voting mechanisms, either through secured EVMs in designated centres or digitally controlled platforms to let those citizens to exercise their franchise without being physically present in their constituencies. Also, the EC should bring in reforms like forming a centralized national voter database that helps in preventing the duplication of votes across States, and deploying mobile enrolment units in industrial and IT hubs to bring migrant workers into the system,” they said.

The JSP leaders also suggested that the EC should mandate minimum infrastructure standards for polling stations, increase the number of polling stations in urban areas coupled with better queue management systems, and explore appointment-based or staggered voting slots that would drastically improve voter turnout and restore faith in the voting process.

Some other suggestions made by the JSP delegation was to adopt the best practices followed by the European Union and Estonia, Switzerland, USA, Australia and Brazil in conducting elections efficiently, and to put in place a robust oversight and accountability mechanism.