The Opposition walked out of the Rajya Sabha on Monday, December 1, 2025, the first day of the Winter Session. They demanded the Union government hold an urgent discussion on electoral reforms. The demand comes after around two dozen booth-level officers (BLO) died by suicide following the start of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in several states. Soon after the felicitation ceremony for Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien raised the issue. He said all Opposition parties want a discussion on SIR and asked the government to begin it immediately. Mr. O’Brien noted that Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had told an all-party meeting he would "come back" with an answer on the demand. Mr. Radhakrishnan asked Mr. Rijiju for a response. The minister said, "Nobody is undermining any matter which was brought forth by the Opposition party in the all-party meeting or Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting. What I am saying is, it is under the consideration of the government." He added, "If you set a condition that it has to be taken up today itself, then it becomes difficult, because you have to give certain space." Mr. Rijiju said multiple Opposition parties had requested a discussion on this and other issues. "I need to protect the interests of those parties too," he said. He emphasized, "the government is not averse to taking up discussion on anything. Please give us some time while there are other businesses listed. The demand has not been rejected. So, don’t presume the government is not ready to discuss any matter. Please do not put a condition on the timeline." Opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge supported Mr. O’Brien's stand and urged the government to stop attempts to divide the Opposition. "Don’t divide us. If you try to divide us, we will be stronger," he stated. Mr. Kharge said all Opposition floor leaders had met and decided to unite on raising the SIR issue. Senior Congress MP Pramod Tiwari stated that 23 BLOs have died by suicide so far, including recently Sarvesh Singh from Moradabad. "How many lives do they want to take? This isn’t the first time — many times, discussions have taken place on election reforms," Mr. Tiwari added.