PATNA: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) on Thursday issued a show-cause notice to its MP Girdhari Yadav his controversial remarks on the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state. The notice contended that the remarks "inadvertently lent credibility to the baseless and politically motivated allegations made by the Opposition."
The notice, signed by the party’s national general secretary Afaque Ahmad Khan, stated that the JD(U) viewed the MP's conduct as a lapse in discipline, and not in consonance with its stated position on the matter of electoral roll revision.
"Your public comments on such a sensitive matter, especially in an election year, not only cause embarrassment to the party but also inadvertently lend credibility to the baseless and politically motivated allegations made by the opposition," the notice stated.
The MP has been requested to reply within 15 days of receiving the notice. In case the minister does not respond, disciplinary action might be initiated against him, the notice stated.
On Wednesday, while talking to the media outside the Parliament, Girdhari alleged, "Election Commission has 'no practical knowledge' and has 'forcefully imposed' the revision on nearly eight crore voters. It neither knows the history nor geography of Bihar. It took 10 days for me to collect all the documents. My son stays in America... how will he complete all formalities in just a month?"
On Thursday too, Girdhari made comments that were not in line with the JD (U)’s stand on the issue, clarifying that such comments on SIR were made in personal capacity.
"This is my personal opinion on the SIR and not of the party which I belong to," the MP said.
While talking to the media, Girdhari said that the Election Commission is a constitutional institution, and that it should listen to everybody’s views. Whatever EC is doing for carrying out SIR in Bihar, it is wrong, he stated. He added that he would stop making statements on the SIR if Nitish asked him to do so.