LUCKNOW: Accusing Congress MP Rahul Gandhi of misleading the country with his claim that 13 crore votes had been deleted to foment anarchy, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra defended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Patra said the Opposition was spreading confusion over the exercise.
Addressing the media in Varanasi on Monday, Patra dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s claim that 13 crore votes had been “stolen”, stating that the SIR was aimed at refining electoral rolls. He said the removal of names was part of the process of verifying and updating the voter list and did not amount to theft.
The BJP leader from Puri in Odisha explained that the exercise involved verifying the details of voters who were absent, had permanently relocated, were deceased or had duplicate registrations.
“This is not the first time such an exercise has been conducted; similar SIR exercises have been carried out in the past as well,” he said.
Patra added that voters could have their names added to the electoral rolls by filling in the prescribed form if they had changed their addresses.
Booth-Level Officers (BLOs) conduct door-to-door verification to collect information, he said. Political parties can also appoint their own Booth-Level Agents (BLAs) to scrutinise the electoral rolls. Patra questioned why Opposition parties' BLAs were not examining the lists.
The BJP spokesperson asserted that individuals whose names were missing from the electoral rolls could get them included by following the prescribed procedure.
Rejecting allegations by former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that vote theft had led to her defeat, Patra pointed out that Trinamool Congress candidates had won several Assembly constituencies where a large number of names had reportedly been deleted.
Highlighting the addition of young voters to the electoral rolls, he also rejected claims that young people were being deprived of their voting rights.
Defending the Election Commission, Patra said the revision exercise was being conducted in accordance with the Commission’s established procedures.
Refuting allegations made by Rahul Gandhi and other Opposition leaders, Patra argued that the Opposition’s electoral defeats were the result of its own political standing rather than the revision of electoral rolls.
Patra also raised concerns about infiltration in West Bengal and the alleged inclusion of such individuals in the electoral rolls. He asserted that the right to vote should be reserved exclusively for Indian citizens.