Massive anti-SIR stir rocks Bengaluru's Freedom Park

Bengaluru Protesters from various walks of life, including women and students, gathered in large numbers at Freedom Park here on Thursday and the mood dramatically turned electric, with unceasing slogan-shouting, demanding the scrapping of the SIR exercise and Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Led by actor-activist Prakash Raj, YouTuber Dhruv Rathee and Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke, the protesters also demanded scrapping of the SIR and returning to paper ballots. According to the organisers, the protest, a people's tribunal for the victims of SIR from across Karnataka, will be followed by a "Chappal protest" in solidarity with women. "Error 404 - Name Not Found", and "It's done bro, resign sir" and "Don't erase us, hear us," were among the slogans found on posters waved by protesters. Scrap SIR Actor-activist Prakash Raj demanded scrapping the SIR exercise, alleging it was not merely about deletion of votes, but an attack on the dignity and rights of citizens. CEC Gyanesh Kumar is "acting at the behest of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah," he alleged Some protesters also raised slogans like "Dictatorship will not be tolerated", "vote theft", "Gyanesh Kumar Gaddi leave your chair." Posters featuring freedom fighters Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose also appeared along with other posters like "Grand Theft Democracy." Dipke alleged that voter deletions under the SIR were aimed at disenfranchising those opposed to the BJP and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the EC of "undermining" democracy. Dhruv Rathee alleged that there was "zero transparency and zero accountability from the EC," over the SIR exercise. "I have not come here for regime change," he added. Tight security arrangements were in place to ensure that no untoward incidents takes place.

Stir in a nutshell CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, and actor-activist Prakash Raj led a protest in Bengaluru on Thursday. Protesters demanded the immediate resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar due to alleged irregularities in the Special Integrated Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Slogans like "Error 404 - Name Not Found" and "Vote theft" were raised, highlighting concerns over deleted voter names. A Bengaluru software engineer reported his name was deleted without his knowledge, underscoring the personal impact of the alleged irregularities. Organisers announced a "Chappal protest" to follow, in solidarity with women affected by the SIR exercise.