Veteran journalist Rajagopal says his passport wasn't renewed over SIR exclusion

R Rajagopal, former editor of The Telegraph, has alleged that his passport renewal has been stalled after his name was deleted from West Bengal’s electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

Speaking to the media, Rajagopal said he was officially informed on March 27 that his name had been excluded from the electoral roll. He said he had applied for passport renewal on February 27, and the biometric verification was completed smoothly on March 19.

The following day, he was informed that his application had been sent for police verification. Rajagopal said he was subsequently asked to appear at the police station, instead of officers visiting his residence for verification, as is usually the practice.

According to him, police first sought his voter ID card to generate a one-time password (OTP). When he informed them that his voter ID had been deactivated, they asked him to produce several other documents, including his matriculation certificate, his father's death certificate, PAN card, Aadhaar card and flat ownership documents.

He said he received no further communication until May 20, when a security control officer attached to the Kolkata Police informed him that the passport verification process had been affected because his name had been deleted from the electoral roll under the SIR.

Rajagopal said he was issued a slip confirming his exclusion from the electoral roll and informed the authorities that he had already challenged the deletion before a court.

According to Rajagopal, he was informed in writing on June 17 that passport verification had been denied because his name had been deleted from the electoral roll. Although he later secured an appointment for July 17 at the passport office, he said no fresh documents had been sought.

Meanwhile, the Editors Guild of India (EGI) issued a statement condemning the denial of electoral and passport rights to Rajagopal. The Guild alleged that despite decades of public service as a journalist and editor, Rajagopal had been disenfranchised through the deletion of his name from the electoral roll and had been unable to renew his passport for over 100 days due to an alleged adverse police verification report.

The EGI said the case highlighted the difficulties faced by citizens affected by the voter roll revision. It argued that if such a situation could arise in the case of a well-known public figure like Rajagopal, the plight of ordinary citizens lacking similar public visibility could be far worse. The Guild urged the Election Commission to restore Rajagopal's name to the electoral roll at the earliest and extend similar relief to others facing comparable circumstances.

Opposition parties, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC) and CPM, criticised the development. Congress Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha said the incident reflected a breakdown of due process, while TMC MP Sagarika Ghose called Rajagopal’s account “shocking” and “disturbing”. CPM general secretary M A Baby alleged that the SIR process was being used to disenfranchise vulnerable groups.

The Special Intensive Revision in West Bengal has triggered legal and political debate, with several petitions challenging the deletion or adjudication of voters’ names. The Supreme Court has allowed the exercise to continue while directing the formation of appellate tribunals headed by retired High Court judges to hear appeals.

Rajagopal’s statement comes amid ongoing litigation related to the SIR process, with multiple petitioners alleging that their names were removed despite submitting valid identity documents.