HYDERABAD: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Sunday raised serious concerns over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that the BJP and RSS were conspiring to delete voters’ names through Form 7 applications.
Addressing the media here, the Hyderabad MP said that applications were being submitted seeking the deletion of specific voters’ names through Form 7. “But the details of those who submitted these applications are not available with the authorities concerned,” he said.
Demanding that the Election Commission of India take immediate action on this issue, he warned that if the alleged irregularities are not curbed, the AIMIM would organise protests in Hyderabad on a scale larger than the demonstrations held at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.
The AIMIM chief made it clear that his party would not remain silent on the issue and would continue to raise concerns with the Election Commission.
Owaisi also criticised the SIR process during his visit to Maharashtra. He alleged that the exercise was being used as a “backdoor” route to implement a National Register of Citizens.
He said the AIMIM had opposed the SIR process from the beginning and expressed apprehension that the same process could eventually be used as the basis for implementing an NRC across the country.
According to Owaisi, the process could cause significant difficulties for ordinary citizens. He urged people not to take the SIR exercise lightly, warning that even a minor lapse or negligence could potentially put their voting rights and citizenship at risk.
He called upon the EC to address the concerns surrounding Form 7 applications and the SIR process immediately, while reiterating that the AIMIM would continue to oppose the “arbitrary deletion of voters from electoral rolls”.
Approach courts if you have evidence: BJP
Hyderabad: Hitting back at AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi for alleging irregularities in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, state BJP chief spokesperson NV Subhash on Sunday advised the Hyderabad MP to take legal recourse if he has evidence to prove his claims. Subhash was responding to Owaisi alleging that BJP and Sangh Parivar members were filing Form 7 applications.
“A person with a legal background should know that serious allegations against a constitutional authority cannot be established through public statements alone. There’s nothing wrong in seeking scrutiny on the functioning of a constitutional institution in a democracy but casting aspersions is. If there are genuine discrepancies, identify, document and challenge them through the prescribed mechanism. Political allegations cannot substitute for evidence or due process,” he said.
