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India's envoy Vinay Kwatra rejected Pramila Jayapal's criticism of the electoral roll revision. The exchange highlights tensions over foreign commentary on India's democratic processes.
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Washington,Oct 15, 2026 21:10 IST
India on Thursday described US Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal's remarks questioning the Election Commission's revision of electoral rolls as "unacceptable interference" in the country's internal affairs, news agency Press Trust of India reported.
India's Ambassador to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, responded after Jayapal raised concerns over what she called the removal of 130 million voter names from India's draft electoral rolls and expressed support for non-violent protests against alleged "anti-democratic efforts" in the country.
"The remarks by @RepJayapal on India's electoral and political processes are unacceptable interference in India's internal affairs," Kwatra said in a post on X.
"India is a vibrant democracy, with robust, independent constitutional institutions and a longstanding record of free and fair elections," he said.
Kwatra said he was always open to a constructive conversation with Jayapal to address what he described as her misconceptions, according to PTI.
Jayapal, a Democratic Congresswoman from Washington state, said the developments in India appeared to follow a playbook similar to what the Trump administration was doing in the US to undermine voting rights in a democracy.
She said protecting democracies everywhere was essential and that Indian people, like Americans, deserved free and fair elections.
"Non-violent resistance movements are essential in these moments, and I stand with the Indian people who are engaging in non-violent protests to counter anti-democratic efforts in India," Jayapal said.
According to Election Commission of India statistics cited by PTI, about 7.2 crore names were deleted from the draft electoral rolls during the first and second phases of the SIR exercise in 13 states and Union Territories.
In the ongoing third phase, draft lists have been published for 18 states and Union Territories, with 6.16 crore voter names deleted.
The Election Commission has maintained that the exercise is intended to update electoral rolls by identifying entries related to deceased, duplicate, shifted and otherwise ineligible voters.
The Commission has said that genuine voters whose names were inadvertently left out during the SIR process can seek inclusion through the claims and objections process and later through Form 6.
India has rejected Jayapal's criticism of the electoral roll revision, while the Election Commission has said eligible voters omitted from the draft lists have avenues to apply for inclusion.
With PTI Inputs
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