New Delhi, Jul 17 (PTI) The Congress on Thursday alleged that the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral roll in Bihar is a “deliberate and diabolical” move to rig elections through large-scale disenfranchisement, with Rahul Gandhi asking whether the poll body has completely become the BJP’s “Election Chori branch”.
Gandhi claimed that the Election Commission (EC) had been caught “red-handed” stealing votes in the name of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
The EC has all along maintained that the revision, being held after 22 years, will cleanse the voters’ list of ineligible people, duplicate entries and include those eligible according to law to vote.
Gandhi shared a post by Ajit Anjum, whose YouTube channel is running a series on SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar.
“The Election Commission has been caught red-handed stealing votes in the name of ‘SIR’ in Bihar. Work — just theft, but name is ‘SIR’ and FIR will be lodged against the one who exposes it!” Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X.
“Is EC still ‘Election Commission’ or has it completely become BJP’s ‘Election Chori’ branch?” the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
Anjum has been accused of spreading communal tensions in the Begusarai district by the local administration.
He had denied the allegation and shared a screenshot of an FIR lodged against him.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared an interview with former election commissioner Ashok Lavasa.
“Here is Ashok Lavasa, who was Election Commissioner during 2018-2020, bringing out the reality of the SIR exercise in Bihar. The Special Intensive Revision of the electoral roll is a deliberate and diabolical move to rig the elections through large-scale disenfranchisement,” Ramesh said on X.
“A PM who masterminded notebandi has orchestrated this votebandi,” he alleged.
Opposition parties have asserted that the ongoing exercise will disfranchise crores of eligible Indian citizens for the want of citizenship documents.
On Wednesday, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar thanked the eligible voters of Bihar for their active participation in the “much-needed” cleaning of the electoral rolls during SIR.
Kumar’s remarks came in the backdrop of the Supreme Court hearing a clutch of pleas questioning the intent behind SIR ahead of the assembly polls in the state later this year. PTI ASK ASK KSS KSS
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