Senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Pramod Tiwari on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, questioning the rejection of widely accepted identity documents and accusing the BJP of orchestrating the revision to sway upcoming elections.
“When BJP senses defeat in Bihar, it resorts to dishonesty. If Aadhaar and Ration Cards aren’t enough for verification, what is — a BJP office memo?” Tiwari said, expressing strong criticism during an interaction with ANI.
Supporting Rahul Gandhi’s stance, Tiwari said that faith lies with the Supreme Court, which is currently hearing petitions challenging the EC’s revision order.
“They can do whatever they want, but we trust the Supreme Court to uphold citizens’ voting rights,” he said.
Tejashwi Yadav, Leader of Opposition in Bihar and RJD leader, echoed similar concerns and accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of acting like a “BJP cell.”
“Why are Aadhaar, Ration Cards, Job Cards, and MNREGA documents being rejected? Why isn’t the EC clarifying anything? Is this a deliberate attempt to confuse poor voters in Bihar?” Yadav said.
Opposition parties, under the INDIA bloc, have dubbed the SIR a “backdoor NRC” and a tool for “vote theft.” On Wednesday, they staged a ‘Bihar Bandh’ rally in Patna, warning that tactics allegedly used in Maharashtra could be replicated in Bihar.
RJD’s Yadav even labeled the ECI “Godi Aayog”, accusing the NDA of misusing a constitutional body to delete poor voters’ names.
Despite widespread criticism, the Election Commission reported that over 57% of enumeration forms had been collected, reaffirming its aim to purify electoral rolls and ensure fair elections.
Among the protest participants were several INDIA bloc leaders including CPI General Secretary D. Raja, CPI(ML) leader Dipankar Bhattacharya, Bihar Congress President Rajesh Ram, Kanhaiya Kumar, and Sanjay Yadav.
The political controversy around the electoral roll revision is likely to intensify as Bihar prepares for a crucial assembly election, with both sides accusing each other of undermining democracy.
