Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the Election Commission was attempting to steal votes in Bihar just as it had allegedly done in Maharashtra, The New Indian Express reported.
The special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar was “not only an attempt to steal your vote but also of your future”, The Hindu quoted the Opposition leader as saying.
“But the youths of Bihar will not let it happen…” he added.
Bihar is expected to head for Assembly elections in October or November.
Addressing workers of the Opposition INDIA bloc following a protest march in Patna against the revision of the voter roll launched by the poll panel, Gandhi said that the Election Commission “should know that this is Bihar, and the people of this state will never allow the election body to steal the mandate here after what it did in Maharashtra and Haryana”.
Gandhi and the Congress have repeatedly alleged that there was “industrial-scale rigging involving the capture of our national institutions” in the Maharashtra polls held in November.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance had defeated the Maha Vikas Aghadi, which includes the Congress, in the polls.
The special intensive revision of the electoral rolls in Bihar was announced by the Election Commission on June 24 ahead of the Assembly polls.
As part of the exercise, persons whose names were not on the 2003 voter list will need to submit proof of eligibility to vote. This means that 2.9 crore out of the state’s 7.8 crore voters – or about 37% of the electors – will have to submit documentary evidence.
Politicians, activists, civil rights group People’s Union for Civil Liberties and non-governmental election watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms have moved the Supreme Court challenging the exercise. The court is expected to hear the pleas on Thursday.
Watch: ‘Need a civil disobedience movement against EC’: TMC MP Mahua Moitra on Bihar voter roll revision
Gandhi told supporters on Wednesday that the “mandate was stolen” in Maharashtra.
“Now in Bihar, the right to vote is under threat [from] an old conspiracy in a new form,” The New Indian Express quoted him as saying. “We will continue to expose these anti-constitutional forces. Together with the people and the youth, we will give a fitting reply.”
Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav and Communist Party of India’s D Raja were among Congress allies who participated in the protest on Wednesday.
Yadav said that the Election Commission had become a puppet of the BJP.
“With its help, the BJP will first erase the votes of the poor and then take away their ration, pensions, and reservations, ultimately stripping them of their right to vote,” The New Indian Express quoted the former deputy chief minister as saying.
On July 2, eleven INDIA bloc parties told the Election Commission that the special intensive revision of Bihar’s electoral rolls risked disenfranchising more than 2.5 crore voters, as they may not be able to produce the necessary documents.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday defended the exercise, claiming that the exercise had to be carried out as no one was satisfied with the current voter rolls.
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