LDF to Oppose Bihar-Model SIR Implementation in Kerala: T P Ramakrishnan

Thiruvananthapuram: The LDF will oppose the implementation of the Bihar -model SIR (State-wide NRC) in Kerala, LDF convenor T P Ramakrishnan said. The front will hold a week -long state-level protest against SIR, he added, while speaking to the media here in Thiruvananthapuram.

The AKG Centre for Studies and Research will organise a seminar examining the legal aspects of SIR. From October 21 to 27, LDF plans to conduct seminars, meetings, evening protests, public rallies, and marches across 14 districts to highlight its opposition to the SIR.

Ramakrishnan stressed that voter list revisions should be transparent and opposed the consideration of 2002 as the base year. He said individuals born after 2002 would be required to submit their parents’ documents to prove citizenship, which he argued undermines voter rights.

Kerala has maintained rigorous voter inspections over the years. While there are mechanisms to remove ineligible voters, the move, Ramakrishnan said, risks targeting genuine voters and certain communities. He reiterated that India opposes amendments to citizenship laws that define citizenship on religious grounds and described the NRC as a roundabout way to implement such laws. He also suggested that ration cards should be accepted as a foundational document.

The central government, he added, is attempting to implement the citizenship register via the NRC in a politically motivated manner, with the Election Commission intervening despite its independent mandate. With local body elections underway, revising the voter list is impractical. The Kerala Election Commission has requested that the NRC not be implemented at this time. All political parties in the state have expressed their positions on the matter. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the proposal he presented in the Assembly for a comprehensive voter list revision was unanimously approved.