New Delhi: A total of 23 opposition parties including those outside the INDIA bloc – the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and one independent MP – on Tuesday (June 30) have written a joint letter to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll exercise by the Election Commission of India (ECI) as well as other election-related issue.The letter comes weeks after 25 opposition parties held a meeting of the INDIA bloc on June 8 and resolved to forge unity, and sent a letter to the CJI on the SIR and the fairness of elections. While the DMK and the AAP did not attend the meeting earlier this month, the two parties have signed on the letter, and “teamwork” made it happen, The Wire has learnt.The DMK, which was a constituent of the INDIA bloc did not attend the meeting earlier this month following the Congress’ move of deserting the party after the Tamil Nadu assembly elections and choosing to align with the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) instead.The Wire has earlier reported that at the meeting, the Congress faced criticism for how it had dealt with the DMK, and there was consensus among the leaders that all parties would make efforts to bring back both the DMK and the AAP back into the bloc.In a statement, Congress MP and general secretary media in-charge Jairam Ramesh said that in accordance with the meeting on June 8, a joint letter had been sent to the CJI.“21 political parties plus one Independent attended the INDIA janbandhan meeting on June 8, 2026 where a decision was taken to address a joint letter to the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India on the SIR process of the Election Commission of India and other election-related issues,” he said.“Accordingly a joint letter now signed by 23 political parties plus one Independent has been sent to the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India today. The Opposition parties are firmly anchored in SURE—Solidarity, Unity and REsistance.”TMC MP Derek O’Brien also responded to Ramesh’s statement on X and confirmed that non-INDIA bloc parties, the AAP and DMK have signed the letter.Good going from INDIA. And yes, @AamAadmiParty @arivalayam DMK also signed the joint letter to CJI https://t.co/MtIpS7GdC4— Derek O’Brien | ডেরেক ও’ব্রায়েন (@derekobrienmp) June 30, 2026The move to send the letter comes as the SIR has completed a year after it was first started in Bihar last year. Since then the exercise has been held in 13 states and Union Territories, following which over five crore voters have been deleted, and nearly 27 lakh voters in West Bengal alone were not able to vote in the April assembly elections with the appeals pending before judicial tribunals.The Wire has reported that a year after the exercise started, the EC is yet to provide a figure for the number of alleged illegal immigrants found on the electoral rolls, even as those deleted in the SIR are being refused welfare benefits despite the Supreme Court maintaining in its order upholding the SIR last month that the poll body can only verify citizenship for the purpose of inclusion in the electoral rolls only.