Bihar polls: INDIA bloc speaks in one voice against EC's 'intensive revision' of electoral rolls

The opposition INDIA bloc on Friday, 27 June, vehemently opposed the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) proposed special intensive revision of electoral rolls ahead of the Bihar assembly elections due later this year.

Addressing a press conference in Patna, RJD leader and former deputy chief minister, Tejashwi Yadav, said, “We suspect that this exercise, which seeks documents from voters that few might possess, is aimed at disenfranchising a large number of people—especially those from deprived sections of society.” Congress’s media and publicity department chief Pawan Khera and CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, were also present at the  press conference.

The reaction by the INDIA bloc leaders follows EC’s recent decision to carry out special revision of rolls in Bihar to weed out “ineligible names” and ensure all eligible citizens are included.

What has invited criticism is the provision that puts the onus on the voters, new and existing, to provide within one month proof of birth and birthplace for those born before July 1987, proof of birth and birthplace for self and one parent for those born between July 1987 to December 2004, and proof of birth and birthplace for self and both parents for those born after December 2004.

Yadav, who is currently the Leader of the Opposition in Bihar, alleged that “Once names are struck off the voters’ list, the next step could be depriving them of the benefits of social welfare schemes.”

He said, “It is impossible for the EC to conduct such a mammoth exercise in just 25 days, as it has proposed. If, indeed, it is possible, I would challenge the Centre to get the caste census done in two months flat.”

#WATCH | Patna, Bihar | RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav says, "... The Election Commission has announced a special revision of the voter list in Bihar... This means that the voter list of 8 crore Biharis have been sidelined and a new list will be generated. Why is this being done 2… pic.twitter.com/o6i9AlpmbR

— ANI (@ANI) June 27, 2025

Bihar: Congress opposes EC’s special intensive revision of electoral rolls

Khera said, “Mahatma Gandhi's three monkeys saw, heard and spoke no evil. The EC sees, hears and speaks no truth. When our leader Rahul Gandhi raised doubts over the way assembly polls were held in Maharashtra, the rebuttal came from the BJP.” He claimed that for the EC, Bihar was a “laboratory” and similar experiments could follow elsewhere in the country.

Bhattacharya said the proposed exercise would be a “logistical nightmare”.

In a letter to Chief Election Commission Gyanesh Kumar, Communist Party of India (Marxist) Politburo member Nilotpal Basu said the recognised political parties should have been taken into confidence before the launch of the revision exercise.

बिहार के लोगों के अधिकारों पर डाका डाला जा रहा है। बिहार में विधान सभा चुनाव से ठीक पहले साजिशन मतदाताओं का विशेष गहन पुनरीक्षण (SIR) किया जा रहा है। इसमें घर-घर जाकर वोटरों को सत्यापित किया जाएगा और उनसे उनकी नागरिकता साबित करने को कहा जाएगा।

ये खुले तौर से साजिश है, डाका है।… pic.twitter.com/FRI42ts63p

— Congress (@INCIndia) June 27, 2025

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Basu said the insistence on providing proof of residence for all existing voters will lead to unnecessary harassment of voters, who may not have the requisite documents, and the insistence on proof of parents will only complicate matters further.

He compared the exercise to the proposed National Register of Citizens. “There are fears that it may be used to target a certain section of voters leading to their disenfranchisement,” he said.

निर्वाचन आयोग बिहार में गुप्त तरीक़े से एनआरसी लागू कर रहा है। वोटर लिस्ट में नाम दर्ज करवाने के लिए अब हर नागरिक को दस्तावेज़ों के ज़रिए साबित करना होगा कि वह कब और कहाँ पैदा हुए थे, और साथ ही यह भी कि उनके माता-पिता कब और कहाँ पैदा हुए थे। विश्वसनीय अनुमानों के अनुसार भी केवल…

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) June 27, 2025

Questions a fair-minded ECI cannot ignore

After Bihar, it is apprehended that West Bengal could be next. The All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) MP Saket Gokhale said in New Delhi that the proposed revision of rolls will have “devastating” effects on voting rights and also on citizenship.

In a post on X, he said those failing to provide the required documents could easily be branded as “foreigners” and losing voting rights is not the only danger.

“Modi Government is taking away your right to vote and bringing in the NRC. Yesterday, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee raised a very important issue which will have devastating effects not only on your voting rights but also your citizenship,” Gokhale said.

He demanded that the ECI roll back its decision.

“The ECI must be forced to roll back and scrap this dangerous and sinister program which will be used for deleting voters and even snatching their citizenship,” he added.

चुनाव आयोग बिहार में दलित, पिछड़ों, अतिपिछड़ों का वोटिंग अधिकार खत्म करने के खेल में जुट गई है!

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