Oppn parties trying to pressure judiciary with bandh in Bihar against electoral roll revision BJP

     New Delhi, Jul 9 (PTI) Coming out strongly in support of the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, the BJP on Wednesday lashed out at the opposition parties for holding a bandh in the state against the exercise and asked if they want illegal infiltrators, including Rohingyas, to vote in elections.
     Addressing a press conference here, senior BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad questioned the motive behind the strike, asking the opposition parties if they are trying to pressure the judiciary by such tactics.
     “All these leaders have approached the Supreme Court, which is their right, and when the hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, why are they engaging in street politics today to exert pressure?” he said.
     What is the purpose of taking to the streets today, Prasad asked, adding, “Is it an attempt to pressure the judiciary?”
     “These people must either trust the judiciary or stick to the streets,” he said.
     Prasad underlined that only those people can vote in elections who are Indian citizens, 18 years of age or above and ordinarily residents of the area where they are registered to vote.
     “So, if the voter list is being revised, what is the issue?” he said.
     “Do they want the names to remain on the voter list that do not belong there, like those of infiltrators?
     "Isn’t it true that sometimes Rohingyas or other such individuals illegally get their names added to the voter rolls? If the work is being done with full honesty, what is the objection?” he said.
     Prasad said the message is clear that the opposition leaders want to politicise the issue to benefit those who have been illegally added to the voters' list.
     “The simple truth is that they know they will not win the Bihar elections, just as they were defeated in Haryana, Maharashtra and Delhi,” he said.
     This came as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav and other opposition leaders on Wednesday joined a state-wide bandh in Bihar against the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
     Questioning the timing and the intent of the electoral roll revision, the opposition parties have alleged that the exercise has been initiated by the Election Commission barely a few months ahead of the assembly polls in the state to "disenfranchise a substantial number of voters" and benefit the ruling NDA.
     Prasad said out of a total of 7.90 lakh voters in Bihar, four crore people have already submitted the enumeration form.
     “This means more than 50 per cent participation, and there are still 16 days remaining,” he said.
     Prasad said the work of electoral rolls revision in Bihar is “moving swiftly”.
     “They (opposition) say the Election Commission is not working properly, that the voter list is inaccurate. Sometimes, they raise questions about EVMs.
     "And now, when an intensive and transparent revision process is underway and over 50 per cent of the people have voluntarily filled out the forms, they still have objections?” he said.
     “Do opposition parties, including the RJD and Congress, want to do politics on the back of people included in the invalid voter list," he said.
     The conduct of the opposition parties raises “serious questions”, he said.
     Prasad said the Election Commission has clearly stated that the people whose names were in the voter list till 2003 do not need to submit any document, as there was a detailed revision at that time.
     “Today, more than 50 crore people in the country have bank accounts. Everyone has documents like pension papers and school certificates. These are all valid proofs. In Bihar, there are one lakh booths and four lakh BLOs (Booth Level Officers) engaged in this task,” he said.
     After completion of this process, the draft voter list will be published and time will be given for corrections, he said.
     “If anyone has objections, they can apply for a hearing. If dissatisfied with the Returning Officer’s decision, they can appeal to the District Collector.
     "If still unsatisfied, there is an option to appeal to the Chief Electoral Officer of the state. This entire process has been explained publicly multiple times,” he added.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)