Opposition holds protest against SIR in Parliament complex
New Delhi, Aug 19 (PTI) Opposition leaders on Tuesday stepped up their attack against the Election Commission over the voter roll revision in Bihar, with protesting MPs holding a huge banner carrying pictures of the election commissioners and raising slogans against the poll body.
The banner, which carried the picture of CEC Gyanesh Kumar and other two election commissioners in the panel Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, also had 'vote chor" and the words 'Silent Invisible Rigging' written on them.
The protest in Parliament complex was led by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. He was accompanied by prominent opposition leaders and MPs, including Akhilesh Yadav and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Kharge later shared a video of their protest in Parliament in a post on X.
'The Election Commission cannot run away from its constitutional responsibility.
INDIA (bloc) has raised serious questions on Free & Fair Elections with evidence, which the Election Commission should answer by investigating and not by intimidating the opposition!" Kharge said in his post in Hindi.
'From the streets to the Parliament, the fight for voting rights continues," he also said.
The opposition has been protesting in both Houses of Parliament against the SIR, alleging that the EC's exercise is aimed at 'disenfranchising voters" in Bihar ahead of the assembly elections due later this year. They have been demanding a discussion on the issue in both Houses.
Barring discussions on Operation Sindoor in the two Houses, Parliament has seen little business ever since the Monsoon session began on July 21 due to repeated adjournments, mostly over the SIR issue.
The opposition MPs have raised the pitch against the CEC and EC after they held a press conference on Sunday. The Opposition says the EC has not answered any of their queries raised. PTI SKC DV DV
view comments
First Published:
August 19, 2025, 12:15 IST
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Loading comments...
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
18 minutes ago
- The Hindu
NCERT releases two modules on Operation Sindoor for students from Classes 3 to 12
Over three months after the Pahalgam killings and subsequent military conflict between India and Pakistan, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has introduced two new modules on 'Operation Sindoor — A saga of valour' for Classes 3 to 8 and 'Operation Sindoor — A mission of honour and bravery,' for Classes 9 to 12. The modules state that 'Pakistan denied any involvement and didn't take any steps to stop the terrorists' and also states that the attack was 'directly ordered by Pakistan's political and military leadership.' The modules are meant as supplementary reading material for schoolchildren and are available online on NCERT website. Operation Sindoor has been described as 'a confluence of India's policy, intent and decisive capability,' and as 'our answer to protect peace of our country and stop these attacks (Pahalgam and so forth).' The module states that Operation Sindoor was named as such to honour the pain and strength of wives who had lost their soldier husbands to conflict. The module mentions the killing of 19 soldiers in Uri in 2016 and 40 CRPF jawans in Pulwama in 2019. It also mentions that 'the situation (in Jammu and Kashmir) changed over the years with abrogation of Article 370.' It further mentions that 'India's intelligence agencies found that Pakistan-based groups were planning terror attacks from across the border.' Additionally, it says, 'Operation Sindoor was India's way of stopping terrorism, led by Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Hizbul Mujahideen (HuM) and Pakistan's spy agency, ISI.' The module for Classes 9 to 12 states that 'Since independence, Pakistan has often tried to disturb peace in India — sometimes through war, and at other times, through terrorism.' It further states that abrogation of Article 370 paved way for development of Jammu and Kashmir, but 'Pakistan was not ready to accept this progress.' Candlelight marches The module also states that there were candlelight marches by civilians and how communities across India stood up to protest against the attack. It further states, 'Muslim communities in Hyderabad, Lucknow and Bhopal wore black armbands and openly denounced the attack. In Kashmir, shopkeepers closed their shops in protest. Villages near the border demanded strong action and supported the Armed Forces,' the module states. 'The local population stood up and spoke against terrorists. Their response breaks stereotypes and shows the real voice of peace-loving people,' it added. The module also mentions, 'Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, strategic guidance was very clear and empowering.' The module also states that 'On May 8, Pakistan escalated the conflict by attacking our airbases, logistic nodes, forward posts, all along the LoC and Army formation HQs — some using Unmanned Aerial Systems.' It goes on to say, 'Our (India's) integrated air defence grid and Counter-UAS grid were already in place. These systems — like the S-400, MRSAM, AKASH and traditional air defence guns — proved highly effective.' The module states that Pakistan intensified attacks on May 9 and targeted schools, religious places and civilian infrastructure. Indian Army neutralised 35-40 Pakistani Army personnel, as per intelligence inputs, the module states. 'The response (India's) shook Pakistani establishment as our airstrike breached their air defence, creating visible gaps that the world saw,' the module says. The NCERT has prepared special modules as supplementary reading material for students, focusing on key national themes. So far, 16 such modules have been released, including those on Partition Horrors and Chandrayaan Utsav among others. They are designed in a classroom format as a dialogue between a teacher and students intermingled with Q&A format activities.
News18
27 minutes ago
- News18
From Psephology To Apology: Will Election Expert's Data Deletion Blunt Rahul Gandhi's Attack On ECI?
Last Updated: The BJP is out to portray Gandhi as having relied on Sanjay Kumar's data, leading him to launch a nationwide campaign of alleged 'vote theft' A 'sincere apology" and the deletion of social media posts suggesting a significant dip in the number of voters in two assembly constituencies compared to the Lok Sabha election held just months apart seem to have hit at the heart of Congress's attack on the Election Commission regarding Maharashtra. Psephologist and co-director of Lokniti-CSDS Prof Sanjay Kumar made the startling claim two days earlier. However, on Tuesday morning, he posted on X, 'I sincerely apologize for the tweets posted regarding Maharashtra elections. Error occurred while comparing data of 2024 LS and 2024 AS. The data in row was misread by our Data team. The tweet has since been removed. I had no intention of dispersing any form of misinformation." I sincerely apologize for the tweets posted regarding Maharashtra occurred while comparing data of 2024 LS and 2024 AS. The data in row was misread by our Data tweet has since been removed.I had no intention of dispersing any form of misinformation.— Sanjay Kumar (@sanjaycsds) August 19, 2025 This admission came on the heels of Rahul Gandhi's Vote Adhikar Yatra in Bihar, where the Congress leader launched a fierce attack on the Election Commission. The Bharatiya Janata Party was in no mood to let go, with BJP's IT cell chief Amit Malviya lashing out at Kumar's apology, calling him a 'protégé of Yogendra Yadav". Malviya posted angrily, 'Incidentally, when was the last time this protégé of Yogendra Yadav ever got anything right? In all his projections in the run-up to every single election, the BJP is supposedly losing—and when the reverse happens, he turns up on TV justifying how the BJP won. Convenient." Rahul's 'vote chori' campaign Speaking at a recent Bihar rally, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said, 'In Maharashtra, all the opinion polls were predicting that INDIA bloc would form the government, but in the election results, the BJP-led alliance formed the government. The BJP got the votes of 1 crore new voters." Gandhi further stated, 'In the entire country, vote theft is going on. In the name of SIR, they want to add new voters and steal the votes. In Bihar, we will not allow Vote Chori." With CSDS's Sanjay Kumar's turnaround, Congress and Rahul Gandhi may find it tough to promote the narrative of 'vote chori" against India's poll body. Sources indicate there was no unanimity from powerful INDIA constituents when the idea of seeking the removal of Chief Election Officer Gyanesh Kumar was floated. Rahul Gandhi and the Congress may find it harder to push it through due to Tuesday's revelation. BJP's counter Among the issues Rahul Gandhi highlighted in the press conference were duplicate entries of individuals, dozens of voters from a small house, to addresses with 'house number zero". He used EC's constituency-level data to support his claim, which the poll body dismissed. However, if politics is about perception, BJP is out to portray Gandhi as having relied on Kumar's data, leading him to launch a nationwide campaign of alleged vote theft, which now stands deleted. In his now-deleted post on Maharashtra elections, Sanjay Kumar had claimed that in the assembly constituency Ramtek, the number of voters in 2024 was 4,66,203 in the Lok Sabha polls and 2,86,931 in the assembly polls. In his second claim, Kumar suggested that in the assembly constituency Devlali, the number of voters in the Lok Sabha was 4,56,072, and during assembly elections, it came down to 2,88,141. While both posts are deleted, Malviya used screenshots to target Rahul Gandhi, stating, 'The very institution whose data Rahul Gandhi leaned on to defame the voters of Maharashtra has now admitted that its figures were wrong—not just on Maharashtra, but even on SIR." The very institution whose data Rahul Gandhi leaned on to defame the voters of Maharashtra has now admitted that its figures were wrong — not just on Maharashtra, but even on does this leave Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, which brazenly targeted the Election… — Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) August 19, 2025 top videos View all Over the weekend, holding a press conference to respond to Rahul Gandhi's charges, CEC Gyanesh Kumar said, 'If no declaration under oath is given within 7 days, claims will be considered baseless and invalid…" adding that those making unsubstantiated allegations, hinting towards Gandhi, should apologise to the nation. With Sanjay Kumar's U-turn, is that an option for Gandhi? view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: August 19, 2025, 22:47 IST News politics From Psephology To Apology: Will Election Expert's Data Deletion Blunt Rahul Gandhi's Attack On ECI? Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Loading comments...
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
NCERT brings Operation Sindoor to classrooms, calls it a promise of peace
NEW DELHI: The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has rolled out two special supplementary modules on Operation Sindoor for Classes III to XII, presenting the mission as not just a military response but also a pledge to safeguard peace and honour the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack . The material has been introduced a little over three months after the counter-offensive. The modules underline that despite Pakistan's official denial, the Pahalgam attack was carried out on the 'direct orders' of Pakistan's military and political leadership. Detailing India's retaliatory action, the material notes: 'India launched missiles and air strikes, targeting nine terrorist sites situated in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) on May 7, 2025. Out of nine targets which were finally chosen and approved, seven of these terror camps were destroyed by the Indian Army, while the Indian Air Force destroyed terrorist targets in Muridke and Bahawalpur, which are the nerve centres of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. ' The council has reiterated the government's position that civilians were not harmed. 'Every target was double-checked. Only terrorist bases were attacked. This operation showed that India would not let terror masterminds escape punishment,' one module states. The two modules are titled Operation Sindoor: A Saga of Valour for Classes III–VIII and Operation Sindoor: A Mission of Honour and Bravery for Classes IX–XII. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Is it better to shower in the morning or at night? Here's what a microbiologist says CNA Read More Undo They aim to raise awareness among students about India's military capability and resilience. The material describes Operation Sindoor as 'a triumph of bravery, strategy and innovation,' highlighting India's use of advanced air defence systems like the S-400, which shot down enemy aircraft and neutralised drones. The modules also place emphasis on the wave of public solidarity after the Pahalgam attack. They describe nationwide candlelight marches and note that 'Muslim communities in Hyderabad, Lucknow, and Bhopal wore black armbands and openly denounced the attack. In Kashmir, shopkeepers closed their shops in protest, and border villages demanded strong action in support of the Armed Forces.' The secondary module stresses that local Kashmiri populations 'stood up and spoke against terrorists, breaking stereotypes and reflecting the real voice of peace-loving people. ' Explaining the choice of the name, the modules state that 'Operation Sindoor' was selected as a tribute to the widows of victims, symbolising solidarity, empathy and respect. The content situates Operation Sindoor within the continuum of India's firm responses to terror, drawing parallels with the Balakot air strikes of 2019 after Pulwama and earlier wars in 1947, 1965, 1971 and 1999. It underscores that groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Hizbul Mujahideen and Pakistan's ISI were behind the attacks. 'It was not just a military operation; it was a promise to protect peace and honour the lives lost,' the modules conclude.
