Amid escalating protests from the Opposition over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls in Bihar, Union Minister Chirag Paswan has defended the exercise, asserting that while no Indian citizen will face injustice, infiltrators will not be allowed to misuse the right to vote.
Speaking to reporters in Patna on Friday, Paswan said, “This process is not new. It has been conducted four times before, and the same procedures are being followed this time as well. No citizen will be wronged, but infiltrators will not be permitted to exploit our democratic system.”
The SIR, being carried out ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in Bihar, has sparked a political storm. The Opposition INDIA bloc has accused the government of attempting to delete large numbers of legitimate voters, especially from minority and backward communities, under the pretext of identifying “illegal” voters.
On Friday, multiple Opposition MPs submitted Suspension of Business notices in the Rajya Sabha, demanding an urgent debate on the issue. Both Houses of Parliament were once again adjourned amid loud sloganeering, continuing the pattern of frequent disruptions since the start of the Monsoon Session on July 21.
TMC MP Shatrughan Sinha questioned the motives behind the voter list revision, calling it a ploy to manipulate upcoming polls. “What they did in Maharashtra, they are trying to repeat in Bihar. The Election Commission officials are complicit,” he alleged.
TMC leader Mahua Moitra launched a scathing attack on the Election Commission of India (ECI), accusing it of acting like an “extended branch of the BJP.” She claimed the number of “untraceable” voters in Bihar jumped from over 11,000 to more than 1 lakh in just 24 hours, questioning the reliability and transparency of the process.
“Such manipulation has never happened in the history of India. The CEC sounds more like a BJP spokesperson than a constitutional officer. If the Home Ministry says there are 56 lakh illegal voters in Bihar, where did they come from?” Moitra asked.
As the political tension continues to rise, the SIR in Bihar remains at the center of a heated national debate over electoral integrity, alleged disenfranchisement, and institutional neutrality ahead of crucial elections.