Bhopal, Nov 5 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh BJP chief Hemant Khandelwal on Thursday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of spreading misinformation regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and creating distrust among people towards democratic institutions.
Addressing a press conference at the state BJP office, Khandelwal said the SIR is not a new system as the exercise has been conducted in the country 12 times so far, including 10 under the Congress rule.
“Rahul Gandhi’s claim of 13 crore names being removed from the voters’ list is misleading. Verification and removal of names of deceased persons, permanently relocated voters and duplicate entries are necessary processes to make the voters’ list transparent,” he said.
The Congress and other opposition parties are targeting constitutional institutions by misrepresenting the SIR data, he claimed.
To counter this, the BJP has launched a ‘Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao’ (Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy) campaign. As part of these efforts, foot marches have already been organised in Indore, Jabalpur and Bhopal, and such programmes will be organised in other districts of the state in the coming days, Khandelwal said.
People from various sections of society participated in these foot marches, which demonstrates their commitment to maintaining the dignity of democratic institutions, according to the BJP leader.
BJP spokesperson Prem Shukla accused Rahul Gandhi of avoiding a debate over the issue in Parliament, and said Congress leaders, who create a ruckus instead of debating in the House, are now challenging for a debate on the streets.
He said that Parliament is an appropriate forum for discussion between the ruling party and the opposition.
On four occasions, when the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi tried to present its side in the House, Rahul Gandhi and Congress members walked out, Shukla claimed.
Targeting the INDIA bloc over its proposed rally at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi, he alleged that the opposition alliance was trying to create an atmosphere of anarchy in the country.
“If the SIR process is wrong or unconstitutional, then the Congress should answer why this process was carried out during its tenures (in office) under former PMs Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, and Manmohan Singh,” he said.
He pointed out that SIRs were conducted in the country in 1952-56, 1957, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1983-84, 1987-89, 1992-93, 1995, and 2002-03.
The current exercise began in 2025, he said.
“The allegation of 13 crore names being removed from the voters’ list is not true,” the BJP spokesperson said.
Approximately 6.3 crore voters had permanently moved to other locations, and approximately three crore voters were not found at their addresses despite three notices, while the names of approximately 2.5 crore dead voters and 1 crore duplicate entries had been verified, he said.
Approximately 2,70,000 duplicate entries and 8,46,000 dead voters had been removed from the voters’ list in Madhya Pradesh, Shukla said.
“If Rahul Gandhi believes that the name of any eligible voter has been wrongly removed, he should make public the proof about it,” he challenged the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha.
Shukla accused the Congress of blaming the Election Commission and other constitutional institutions for its continuous electoral defeats.
He said that the Congress should review the reasons for its electoral defeats at the level of leadership, policies, and support base.
Referring to the number of Congress and BJP MLAs, Shukla said that when Rahul Gandhi was appointed Congress General Secretary in 2008, the Congress had 1,182 MLAs across the country, while the BJP had 889 MLAs.
In 2014, the number of Congress MLAs dropped to 883, while the number of BJP MLAs increased to 1,035.
He said that when Rahul Gandhi became Congress President in 2017, the party had 807 MLAs, while the BJP had 1,365. When Rahul Gandhi was appointed Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha in 2024, the Congress had 654 MLAs and the BJP had 1,588.
Referring to the participation of Booth Level Agents (BLAs) from all political parties along with Booth Level Officers (BLOs) in the SIR process, Khandelwal said that every individual has the right to file objections regarding the voters’ list.
Khandelwal said retaining the names of eligible citizens in the voters’ list and removing the names of deceased, ineligible, and duplicate entries was essential for strengthening democracy and the credibility of the electoral process. PTI MAS NP
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