‘Murdering democracy': Priyanka Gandhi slams government over Bihar SIR row; INDIA bloc protests outside Parliament
NEW DELHI: Congress MP
Priyanka Gandhi
Vadra on Tuesday criticised the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, accusing the BJP-led government of trying to "murder democracy" ahead of the state assembly elections.
'They are murdering democracy. We have been protesting against it, and this is wrong,' Gandhi said during a protest at the Parliament premises, as quoted by news agency ANI.
Her remarks came amid a united opposition protest led by the INDIA bloc against the
Election Commission
's SIR exercise.
Several MPs, including Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, gathered at the Makar Dwar steps of Parliament holding placards reading 'SIR: Stealing Indian Rights' and 'Death of Democracy'.
They alleged that the revision of voter rolls was being misused to suppress votes and disenfranchise sections of the population.
Posting on X, Priyanka Gandhi accused the government of manipulating elections, first by 'inflating' the voter list in Maharashtra and now by 'removing names' in Bihar.
She labelled the SIR as a 'conspiracy to snatch the right to vote granted by the Constitution', adding, 'We stand firmly against every attempt to trample the Constitution.'
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Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi also alleged the government wants to 'cut votes', and vowed that the issue would be raised in Parliament. 'The entire opposition is speaking on it and is united,' he said, as per ANI.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram compared the SIR to the discriminatory Jim Crow laws of segregated America, saying it would be 'used as a tool to disenfranchise people of the minority community'.
As per news agency PTI, MPs from Congress, SP, RJD, TMC, DMK and JMM joined the protest and slammed the EC's exercise as 'vote bandi' and an attempt to 'steal elections'.
They demanded an immediate halt to the revision process.
Congress leaders Gaurav Gogoi, S Jothimani, Ranjeet Ranjan and Neeraj Dangi moved adjournment motions in both Houses, seeking a debate on the issue. However, amid loud opposition sloganeering, both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2:00 pm.
Earlier in the day, a meeting of INDIA bloc leaders was held, where they resolved to press for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence in Parliament and discuss a range of issues, including the Pahalgam terror attack, Operation Sindoor, the AI 171 crash, and the 'civil war' in Manipur, along with Bihar's SIR row.
Congress general secretary K C Venugopal said the issues raised are directly connected to the people and 'must be given utmost priority'.
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