As the dust settles from a year marked by dramatic electoral shifts across India, the aftermath of the Bihar Assembly elections and the controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls continue to reverberate through the country’s political corridors. At the heart of the latest storm is Akhilesh Yadav, chief of the Samajwadi Party (SP), who has launched a vociferous campaign against the SIR drive, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of orchestrating an assault on constitutional rights and setting the stage for an intense political contest in Uttar Pradesh’s 2027 Assembly elections.
On December 15, 2025, Akhilesh Yadav didn’t mince words. According to Swarajya, he declared, “The BJP government is conducting the SIR to hide its failures. We appeal to everyone to register their votes and prevent them from being cancelled. Otherwise, the BJP is preparing to take away the constitutional rights championed by Baba Saheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar. If the right to vote is taken away, reservations will also end. All other rights guaranteed by the Constitution will be snatched.” His pointed remarks came just weeks after the sweeping victory of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar, a contest that saw the opposition decimated and the SIR exercise thrust into the national spotlight.
The SIR, first rolled out in Bihar ahead of the November 2025 Assembly elections, resulted in a dramatic reduction of the state’s voter rolls—from 78.9 million to 74.2 million, as reported by Business Standard. The Election Commission of India (ECI) hailed the exercise as a success and soon extended it to twelve other states and Union Territories. But not everyone saw it as a triumph for democracy. Akhilesh Yadav and his allies accused the BJP and the ECI of using SIR as a tool to disenfranchise millions, particularly those from marginalized communities.
Yadav’s opposition to SIR is not merely rhetorical. He’s issued a “vigilant-mode” directive to his party’s rank and file, especially targeting the PDA bloc—Pichhra (backward), Dalit, and Alpsankhyak (minority) cadres. He coined the term PPTV, likening it to CCTV surveillance, urging supporters to monitor the process closely and report any irregularities. The SP leader’s strategy is clear: frame the SIR as a threat to the constitutional rights of the most vulnerable, and mobilize these groups as a bulwark against what he describes as the BJP’s “games.”
His warnings are stark. Yadav alleges that, following the NDA’s underwhelming performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the ruling coalition is preparing to remove around 50,000 voters from each constituency it lost before the next assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. “If the right to vote is taken away, reservations will also end,” he cautioned, tying the fate of electoral rights to broader struggles for social justice.
Yet, the resonance of these warnings with the broader electorate remains uncertain. As Swarajya notes, outside of party cadres and leaders, public opposition to the SIR is hard to find on the ground. Many voters, especially in Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, view the revision as a long-overdue step toward transparency, a final blow against the opaque and arbitrary systems that have plagued daily life for decades. For these citizens, the promise of cleaner, more accurate voter rolls outweighs the specter of disenfranchisement painted by opposition leaders.
This divergence in perception is further complicated by the BJP’s “labharthi” (beneficiary) politics, which has sought to unite disparate communities through targeted welfare schemes and a narrative of inclusion. The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh, for instance, has worked to ensure that Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes are included in the state’s development journey, providing them with the necessary documents for electoral participation. This has left Akhilesh Yadav with a shrinking arsenal; as Swarajya points out, his campaign increasingly relies on warnings and anxieties rather than concrete policy proposals.
Meanwhile, the lessons from Bihar loom large. The NDA’s landslide there—winning 202 of 243 seats, with Nitish Kumar returning for a tenth term as Chief Minister—was built on the back of a fractured opposition. The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), led by Tejashwi Yadav, secured only 35 seats, while the Congress managed a mere six out of 61 contested. The Jan Suraaj Party, helmed by election strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor, failed to win a single seat, with 236 of its 238 candidates losing their security deposits, as detailed by Indian Express.
In the wake of this defeat, opposition unity—or the lack thereof—has become a central theme. Akhilesh Yadav, learning from the disarray in Bihar, is now pushing for a more coordinated front with the Indian National Congress (INC) and other parties ahead of 2027. Unlike Tejashwi Yadav, who was criticized for not fully embracing the anti-SIR narrative, Akhilesh is leaving no stone unturned, seeking to rally both traditional and new support bases.
The Congress, for its part, is also reassessing its approach. In December 2025, Prashant Kishor met with Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra for a two-hour closed-door meeting. Both parties described the interaction as routine, but as Indian Express reported, it sparked speculation about a possible recalibration of opposition strategy. Kishor, who had previously distanced himself from the Congress and criticized its leadership, now appears open to dialogue, though no formal collaboration has been announced.
Despite the high stakes and heated rhetoric, the anti-SIR campaign faces significant hurdles. As Swarajya observes, negativity and fear-mongering can only go so far. The BJP, having weathered its own setbacks in 2024, is reemerging as a formidable narrative-setter, countering opposition attacks with an emphasis on governance and inclusion. In the digital age, campaigns lacking in evidence and positive vision struggle to gain traction, often dissipating after a few news cycles.
Looking ahead, the outcomes of 2025 have set the stage for a politically charged 2026, with key states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Puducherry, and Assam preparing for elections. The SIR exercise, now being replicated across these regions, will undoubtedly remain a flashpoint. For Akhilesh Yadav and the opposition, the challenge is clear: move beyond grievance and present a compelling alternative, or risk repeating the missteps of Bihar.
As India’s political landscape continues to evolve, the debate over the SIR and the broader battle for the soul of its democracy show no signs of abating. The months ahead promise more intrigue, more alliances—and, perhaps, a few surprises yet.
