Opposition may raise revision of electoral rolls in Parliament
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Opposition may raise revision of electoral rolls in Parliament
ECI on June 24 announced it will undertake SIR of the electoral roll across the country, beginning with Bihar. The announcement met with strong criticism from Bihar’s opposition Mahagathbandhan, which claimed the move was aimed at electorally benefiting the ruling NDA in the poll-bound state. Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said all constituents of INDIA bloc may knock the door of judiciary against the ongoing SIR if the poll body does not accept opposition parties’ objections about the drive. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said the move is more dangerous than the National Register of Citizens (NRC) The SIR drive is a deliberate attempt to disenfranchise poor, tribal, young, flood-affected, and migrant voters in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, she said.
A senior Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader said the issue will be also taken up politically by the INDIA bloc parties. “The talks among INDIA bloc allies have already started on this issue,” the leader said.
Also read: EC ‘clarifies’ rules as Bihar voter roll drive starts today
In Patna, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said all constituents of INDIA bloc may knock the door of judiciary against the ongoing SIR if the poll body does not accept opposition parties’ objections about the drive.
“The SIR drive of the EC is a deliberate attempt to disenfranchise poor, tribal, young, flood-affected, and migrant voters in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections. All constituents of INDIA bloc may knock the door of judiciary against the ongoing SIR of the electoral roll in Bihar if the EC does not accept the opposition’s objections about the drive,” the Rajya Sabha member said.
ECI on June 24 announced it will undertake SIR of the electoral roll across the country, beginning with Bihar, to weed out ineligible names, citing rapid urbanisation, frequent migration, young citizens becoming eligible to vote, non-reporting of deaths and inclusion of the names of foreign illegal immigrants. The announcement met with strong criticism from Bihar’s opposition Mahagathbandhan, which claimed the move was aimed at electorally benefiting the ruling NDA in the poll-bound state.
Singh said he spoke to RJD chief Lalu Prasad on the issue and urged him to speak to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. The SIR drive has been launched just a few months before the state polls, Singh said, adding, “The EC should have taken the opinion of all political parties before launching this drive.”
Two days after the ECI’s announcement to start the SIR of electoral rolls, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said the move was more dangerous than the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
“I don’t understand the reason behind the ECI move or the rationale behind selecting these dates. This is nothing short of a scam. I seek clarification from the commission on whether they are trying to implement the NRC through the back door. In fact, this looks to be more dangerous than the NRC which every political party in Opposition must resist,” Banerjee, who is also the TMC chief, said.
A leader of a non-Congress party said the ongoing drive might impact other states as well. “Next year, three states which are ruled by INDIA bloc parties will go to poll. Therefore, we need to be united to tackle the issue,” the leader said, also declining to be named.
In 2026, TMC-ruled West Bengal, DMK-ruled Tamil Nadu and the Left parties-led Kerala will go to polls along with Assam and Puducherry.