Varanasi (UP), Nov 2 BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra on Monday defended the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and accused the opposition of spreading confusion over the exercise, even as he faced a volley of questions from journalists and left a press conference amid protests over his responses.
During an interaction at the Circuit House in Varanasi, a journalist questioned why the Election Commission had not held a press conference to address concerns over the electoral rolls and why the BJP spokespersons were speaking on its behalf.
As journalists objected to his “evasive replies”, Patra left the press conference without answering further questions.
Opposition Congress and Samajwadi Party also questioned why the BJP leader was “defending” the Election Commission, when the explanation should have come from the poll body.
Speaking to reporters in Varanasi, Patra dismissed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claim that 13 crore votes had been “stolen” and said the SIR was an exercise aimed at refining the electoral rolls. He said the removal of names was only part of the process of “verifying and purifying” the voter list and did not constitute theft.
The Puri MP explained that the process involves verifying entries of voters who are absent, have permanently relocated, are deceased, or have duplicate registrations.
He said this is not the first time a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has been conducted; similar exercises were carried out in the past as well.
Patra said there is a provision to add a name to the voters’ list by filling out a prescribed form in case of change in a voter’s address.
Booth-Level Officers conduct door-to-door verification to gather information. Political parties can also have their own Booth-Level Agents (BLA) examine the electoral rolls, he said, asking why the BLAs of opposition parties were not scrutinising these lists.
The BJP spokesperson asserted that individuals whose names are missing from the list can have them added by following the established procedure.
Citing the SIR in West Bengal, Patra said that in several Assembly constituencies where a large number of names were reportedly removed, Trinamool Congress candidates emerged victorious.
Highlighting the addition of young voters to the rolls, he refuted the claim that the youth were being deprived of their voting rights.
Defending the role of the Election Commission, Patra said the SIR process was being conducted in accordance with the Commission’s established procedures.
Refuting the allegations of Rahul Gandhi and other opposition parties, he argued that the opposition’s electoral defeats stemmed from their own political standing rather than from the revision of electoral rolls.
Patra further raised concerns regarding infiltration in West Bengal and the subsequent inclusion of such individuals in the electoral rolls. The right to vote should be reserved exclusively for Indian citizens, he asserted.
Referring to Patra’s press conference in an X post, former Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai said the BJP leaders were willing to defend the Election Commission but avoided questions from journalists about the counting of votes and electoral victories in the Varanasi division.
“Why is the BJP so reluctant to give an account of the votes of the people of Kashi?” Rai asked, adding that people’s votes were paramount in a democracy and the government was responsible for answering their questions.
He also praised the journalists for raising questions fearlessly.
Samajwadi Party spokesperson Abbas Haider said Patra appeared to be defending and explaining the Election Commission’s decisions.
“The West Bengal BJP President, Samik Bhattacharya, has even demanded a Padma Bhushan for CEC (Chief Election Commissioner) Gyanesh Kumar, praising his handling of the Bengal elections. When a political party publicly rewards the Election Commission’s actions in this manner, it raises serious questions about institutional independence,” Haider told PTI.
“Is the ECI (Election Commission) functioning independently, or has the BJP become its unofficial spokesperson?” he asked.
(PTI News)
