Congress on Thursday launched a blistering attack on the Election Commission of India (ECI) over its recent directive to carry out a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s voter list within just one month. With the state elections drawing closer, senior Congress leaders alleged that the move is a “deliberate attempt to delete names of the poor, Dalits, backward communities, and migrant workers.”
At a press briefing held at the new Congress headquarters in Delhi, Congress Media and Publicity Chairman Pawan Khera, Bihar Congress President Rajesh Ram, and Congress Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru questioned both the intent and feasibility of the revision process, calling it “humanly impossible.”
“How can you verify the names of 8 crore voters in just 30 days? Even the Chief Election Commissioner has said that this is the new ECI and the new normal. Is it now up to the CEC to decide who he will or won’t meet?” asked Pawan Khera.“If this continues, the ECI may as well shift its office to the BJP headquarters,” he quipped.
The controversy comes a day after a delegation of the INDIA bloc leaders met the poll panel officials, including CEC Gyanesh Kumar, wherein Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi reportedly said that the CEC did not allow all leaders who visited the commission’s office to attend the meeting.Khera also accused ECI official Gyanesh Kumar of leaking internal messages to journalists, stating, “This cannot remain hidden anymore.
What legacy is the CEC leaving behind, of denying people their fundamental right to vote?”Rajesh Ram echoed the concerns, warning that Bihar’s unique socio-geographical challenges - floods in the north, drought in the south, and widespread migration - make a quick revision not only unworkable but discriminatory.“Three crore people have migrated for work.
And what about flood-affected regions? Will you verify them on steamers and boats?” he asked.“Most of the poor, SC, ST, and OBC communities do not possess birth certificates, only 2.18 per cent do. What about the rest?”
He further noted that Bihar’s electoral machinery is overburdened. “BLOs are handling thousands of voters each. There are huge vacancies in the system. How will this task be completed in such a short time? There is a huge shortage of resources and staff," he said.
Krishna Allavaru slammed the move as “Tughlaki farman”, drawing parallels with demonetisation.“In India’s electoral history, has any state ever been asked to furnish proof of 8 crore voters who voted just 12 months ago during the Lok Sabha elections? What changed in a year?”
All three leaders challenged the poll panel to clarify why Aadhaar and other government-issued IDs like ration cards or job cards are not being accepted for verification. As Bihar heads into a critical election, Congress warned, “We will not allow 20 per cent of Bihar’s population to be stripped of their right to vote.”