Parliament heats up over Bihar roll revision

India Today

6 days ago

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar remains a flashpoint between the Election Commission of India and the Opposition, as it rocked the first day of the monsoon session in Parliament on Monday. The poll body has dismissed Aadhaar as one of the documents for the survey - a point of contention for the Opposition - who have alleged massive disenfranchisement. Earlier, the top court left it to the discretion of the Election Commission to decide whether the document should be included. However, in its counter-affidavit, the poll body defended the move, assuring the Supreme Court that the citizenship of a person would not be cancelled if he or she is found ineligible for registration in the roll revision.advertisementThe Opposition isn't buying the argument that the exercise will lead to a cleaner voter list. Hence, the rocky first day of the monsoon session and its spillover on the second day with leaders, including Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav and others, protesting outside the complex with placards showing slogans against the SIR. The leaders raised strong objections, alleging that the revision could be misused to omit the names of minority, Dalit and Opposition-leaning voters ahead of the assembly polls.OPPOSITION SMELLS A POLITICAL AGENDAThis is not a revision, but a political operation - Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said in the House on Monday. "Why is this being done only in Bihar and not across the country?"
RJD and Trinamool Congress also raised similar concerns, claiming the drive could lead to mass deletions of voters from marginalised communities, especially in rural and minority-dominated regions. "It's a backdoor method to rig elections before they begin," RJD leaders said in Lok Sabha.Shambhavi Choudhary MP, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), told India Today,"The opposition is scared in Bihar. They are losing, that's why they are now talking about SIR. These statements are useless, that's why they are saying all these. The Opposition knows that they are losing, that's the reason why they have started building this narrative."Congress MP Shashi Tharoor echoed Choudhary, calling the SIR a "backdoor attempt at voter suppression", while RJD leader Manoj Jha termed it a "deletion drive".The Opposition demanded an immediate halt to the process and called for an all-party oversight committee.JDU leader and Union minister Ram Nath Thakur said,"They are in opposition. Certainly they will raise this, but they should also provide evidence against their claims.CENTRE AND ECI DEFEND SIRIn response, the central government said that the SIR is a routine process and follows the guidelines set by the Election Commission. Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said in Parliament, "There is no agenda behind this. The EC is simply ensuring a clean and updated electoral roll'.He added that no individual would be "unfairly removed" from the electoral rolls and the revision followed legal procedures.The ECI has time and again maintained that this process is being done transparently, with public notices and grievance redressal systems in place. The poll body has said that the revision ensures electoral integrity by removing fake or deceased voters and that anyone wrongly removed can appeal.CONCERNS OVER TRANSPARENCY AND TIMINGadvertisementDespite these assurances, civil society groups and legal experts have raised eyebrows over the sudden urgency of conducting the SIR.ECI has filed its response in the Supreme CourtThe poll body has responded in the Supreme Court to petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision of voter rolls in Bihar. It emphasised that the SIR is an inclusive process and every effort is being made to ensure no eligible voter is left out.Here's what the ECI said:advertisementThe petitions are based on misleading and outdated media reports — not factsIt's a deliberate attempt to twist the narrative and paint the voter revision in a negative lightThe data quoted by the petitioners is old and incorrectInterestingly, many of the petitioners are MPs and MLAs from parties that officially support SIR — and their own booth agents are part of the processThe case is based on suspicion, not reality — no one has lost their voting rights and no violation has taken placeWHY SIR?Many parties had earlier raised concerns about errors in existing voter lists. The SIR is meant to clean up the rolls and restore public trust. It's not just Bihar, the revision is a nationwide exercise. However, Bihar has fast-tracked it due to upcoming elections.The next Supreme Court hearing is scheduled for July 28.- EndsTune InMust Watch
IN THIS STORY#Bihar#Bihar Assembly Elections#Parliament