The Congress party has strongly protested the special intensive revision of voter lists in Bihar, arguing that it infringes upon the rights of the people in the state. They believe this revision is a deliberate attempt to scrutinize voters, verify their identities, and demand proof of citizenship, just before the assembly elections. Pawan Khera, Chairman of the AICC Media and Publicity Department, described the move as a conspiracy and an attack on the voters’ rights, identity, and citizenship. He also questioned the timing of the revision, especially considering the monsoon season and the challenges posed by flood-affected areas.
He raised questions about the necessity of the revision, given that the same voter lists were used in the recent Lok Sabha elections. He also accused the Election Commission of being influenced by the BJP. The opposition alliance, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), also condemned the Election Commission’s proposal for an intensive revision of the voter list. They see it as a plot to help the BJP-led NDA in the upcoming elections.
Opposition leaders, including Tejashwi Yadav, Pawan Khera, and Dipankar Bhattacharya, announced their opposition to the revision and said that a delegation would be sent to the Election Commission. They also stated that further actions would be taken if their concerns were not addressed. Tejashwi Yadav criticized the Election Commission’s sudden urgency, questioning why the revision wasn’t conducted after the Lok Sabha elections. He suggested that the ruling coalition might have instructed the Election Commission to carry out the revision to help them in the upcoming elections. He alleged that this exercise seeks to disenfranchise many voters, particularly from marginalized communities like Dalits, Muslims, and the Other Backward Classes.
He also said that the aim could be to remove names from the voter list and subsequently deprive these people of social welfare schemes. He also criticized the Election Commission’s plan to complete such a large exercise within 25 days, a timeframe he deemed impossible. Pawan Khera echoed these sentiments, criticizing the Election Commission and suggested that Bihar could be a testing ground for similar exercises across the country. Dipankar Bhattacharya, who had written a letter to the Election Commission, called the proposed revision illogical.