Amit Shah to lead BJP’s foot march to ‘Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy’ today - The HinduUpdated - November 01, 2026 07:18 pm IST - HYDERABADUnion Home Minister Amit Shah will lead a padayatra in Hyderabad on Monday under the slogan, “Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy”, as part of the BJP’s campaign to counter the ongoing campaign by the Congress and other Opposition parties against the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.The march will be held from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., starting at the Babu Jagjivan Ram statue opposite Nizam College and proceeding through Abids to Mozzamjahi Market.Union Minister for Coal and Mines G. Kishan Reddy, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Telangana BJP president N. Ramchander Rao, along with party MPs, MLAs, MLCs and other leaders, will be participating in the ‘Maha Padayatra’.According to BJP leaders, the programme is intended to politically take on the Opposition parties for ‘targeting’ democratic institutions, including Parliament, the Supreme Court and the ECI, and appealed to the public to join the march in large numbers.Meanwhile, Malkajgiri MP Eatala Rajender defended the SIR process at a press conference, arguing that the removal of names of deceased voters, those who have migrated and duplicate entries from electoral rolls was necessary to ensure the integrity of elections.He claimed that although the Quthbullapur Assembly constituency has around eight lakh registered voters, only about 3.5 lakh votes are cast during elections. Similarly, he said the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituency has nearly 39 lakh registered voters, but voter turnout remains around 50%.According to Mr. Rajender, the low turnout is partly due to people retaining voter registrations in more than one location. Many migrants continue to keep their names on electoral rolls in their native villages in states such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, or in other parts of Telangana, while also being registered elsewhere, he alleged.Rejecting allegations surrounding the deletion of 13 lakh voter entries across the country, the MP said a “false narrative” was being spread that the removals targeted a particular community. Only four categories of voters were being removed: deceased persons, those who had shifted residence, individuals who had registered at a new location without cancelling their previous registration, and duplicate entries, he maintained.He also alleged that some “foreign entities” were attempting to discredit democratic institutions and criticised the Congress and its leader Rahul Gandhi for what he termed efforts to undermine the country’s peaceful atmosphere.Published - November 01, 2026 07:17 pm ISTSign in to unlock member-only benefits!Access 10 free stories every monthSave stories to read laterAccess to comment on every storySign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single clickGet notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products${ ind + 1 } ${ device }Last active - ${ la }