TN Seshan’s Legacy Returns Amid SIR Row

Former Chief Election Commissioner T. N. Seshan’s famous “I eat politicians for breakfast” remark has resurfaced amid the ongoing debate over the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The reference comes as an Indian Express investigation reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally raised objections at least 14 times over 10 months regarding various SIR-related decisions. Their concerns reportedly covered issues including changes to Form 6, voter additions and deletions, and the centralisation of electoral-roll data.

The report has triggered fresh discussion about the functioning of the three-member Election Commission and the process followed in taking decisions on the electoral rolls. The Election Commission has said that its decisions were taken unanimously and described the observations recorded by the two commissioners as part of the deliberative process. The controversy has therefore brought renewed attention to institutional decision-making within the poll panel and also revived public interest in Seshan’s tenure and his role in asserting the Election Commission’s authority.