NEW DELHI: After its dismal performance in the Bihar Assembly elections, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), a key ally of the opposition Mahagathbandhan, on Sunday raised serious allegations against the ruling NDA coalition that swept the polls with over 200 seats.
The CPI-M alleged that the JD(U)-led NDA had utilised state machinery, resorted to various manipulations, and deployed large sums of money along with large numbers of cadres brought in from outside the state.
In a press statement, the party also said that the coalition benefited from the polarising communal and casteist rhetoric of its leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.
This rhetoric, amplified by a compliant corporate media, drowned out the people’s issues raised by the INDIA bloc, it added.
"A record 67 percent of voters participated in the Bihar Assembly elections—an increase of 9.6 percent compared to the previous election. Notably, 71.6 percent of women voted, marking a significant rise in female political participation. As the vote share data shows, though the NDA did not gain much in terms of votes compared to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, it was able to increase its tally in the legislative assembly," read the statement issued after the Polit Bureau meeting that concluded on Friday.
The CPI-M further said that the Bihar elections show that to defeat the BJP, opposition parties must make a more concerted effort, leading joint struggles against its anti-people policies.
"The CPI-M will examine in detail the partisan attitude of the Election Commission of India (ECI), the abrupt initiation of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), and all other factors, if any, behind these results. The Polit Bureau of the CPI-M thanks the people of Bihar who voted for its candidates and those of the other opposition parties," the statement read. The party contested in four seats but won just one.
Referring to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the Polit Bureau said that the move, targeting 12 states, is a calculated political project by the BJP-RSS combined, operationalised through a pliant Election Commission of India (ECI).
"This is intended to systematically disenfranchise millions of voters," the party said.
"Modeled on the controversial Bihar process, the SIR deliberately employs onerous documentation requirements and an archaic 2002 baseline to effectively function as a backdoor National Register of Citizens (NRC). Its primary objective is to alter the electoral demography to favour the ruling party and undermine the very foundations of universal adult suffrage, representing the most significant assault on electoral democracy," the CPI-M statement added.
The party said it would campaign extensively against the ECI’s attempt to usurp the right to determine citizenship and ensure that no eligible voter is removed from the voters’ list.
It also called upon people to remain vigilant and ensure that bogus voters are not enrolled in the voters’ list through the connivance of the BJP and the EC machinery.
On the recent bomb blast that killed 13 people in Delhi, the CPI-M said that the incident revealed the involvement of a widespread network in carrying out the attack. It also criticised the Centre for the terror attack.
"The failure of the government to provide security to the people and prevent such terrorist attacks is once again exposed by this incident. Following the Pahalgam terrorist attack, the government had claimed that ‘Operation Sindoor’ had eliminated terrorist infrastructure, particularly as it targeted the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters. However, the Delhi blast punctures these claims, as the government itself has attributed the latest attack to Jaish. The government must act swiftly to uncover the terror networks responsible and ensure that all perpetrators are brought to justice. Efforts to polarise society on communal lines using this incident should be firmly dealt with," the statement said.
The party also said that the RSS's centenary commemoration, which started with a series of lectures by its leaders, is being used to extensively spread its communal and divisive ideology.
The Sangh’s hatred towards Marxism is made amply clear by its leaders, who also made disparaging comments on Kerala, calling it a ‘disturbed state,’ the statement added.
"The RSS is using its control over various levers of the State to push for the realisation of its objective of establishing a ‘Hindu Rashtra’," the party said.
The Polit Bureau also denounced the government for pushing the country deeper into the US embrace, which it said is proving detrimental to India’s interests.