The two Houses of Parliament were adjourned on April 2, 2026 after completion of the financial business of the Budget session. It was the right time to adjourn — because polling in the state Assembly elections of Assam, Kerala and UT of Puducherry had been scheduled on April 9, and barely a week was left for MPs to rush to their constituencies and join the election campaign. Besides, nominations for the state Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal had commenced on March 30 and polling was fixed on April 23 (and April 29 in West Bengal), and MPs were anxious to return to their constituencies. It was the general belief that there was no urgent business to transact before the end of April.

There was, in fact, no urgent business. The unfinished task was to complete the elections that were underway without further misadventures. S.I.R. was not a misadventure but deliberate mischief. S.I.R. was intended to disenfranchise millions of citizens. (See ‘Millions of Citizen non-voters!’, Indian Express, March 22, 2026).

Except for some rash political speeches, the election process was indeed progressing. The S.I.R. battle of West Bengal was being fought in the Supreme Court. It is unfortunate that no one seemed to have brought to the notice of the Court that, on average, 10 per cent of the adult population of S.I.R.-impacted states had been struck off the electoral rolls and disenfranchised. These included Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West........

© Indian Express