Latest news with #Minta
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Applied for voter card to avail loan for children's education: Minta Devi, at centre of ‘age 124' row
Minta Devi's three sons completed classes 5, 4 and 1 in March. But when it came time to enrol them for the next academic year, the family could not muster their collective fees of Rs 5,000 at the local private school they attended in Bihar's Siwan district. 'Paisa ka abhi dikkat jyada ho gaya hai (Our financial difficulties have worsened lately),' says Minta Devi's husband Dhananjay Kumar Singh (38). Minta Devi (35) tried applying for a personal loan in April to cover the fees. However, she says, she was told to produce a voter card, which she didn't have at the time. That's when the mother of three young boys decided to apply for a voter card. A clerical error would later see Minta Devi being listed in the draft electoral roll, published amid the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, as a 124-year-old. Amid the political tussle over the SIR, the eye-catching error in her age gave further ammunition to the Opposition as they raised the issue in Parliament. On Tuesday, MPs from the INDIA bloc staged a protest in the Parliament complex against alleged irregularities in the process, wearing white T-shirts emblazoned with Minta Devi's name and photo — the same photo she had given for her voter card. The back of the T-shirts was printed with '124 Not Out'. The date of birth on the 35-year-old's new voter card was engraved '15-07-1900', which would have made her the oldest woman alive, until the Siwan district administration clarified that the date was a clerical error made during the online application process. Her correct date of birth is July 15, 1990, according to her Aadhaar card. 'While applying for the voter card through the cyber cafe, I had attached my Aadhaar card as the supporting document. I don't know how the date got changed, but it is not due to any fault of mine,' Minta says. After she got the voter card, Minta says she didn't notice the error in the date of birth until the issue attracted attention. She is registered as a first-time voter in Bihar's Daraundha Assembly seat, under Siwan Lok Sabha constituency, at the Kanya Utkramit Madhya Vidyalaya polling booth in Arjaanipur. She was far from thrilled about the attention the error in her voter card has garnered, saying she only wanted to have her year of birth corrected from 1900 to 1990. 'Even with my enumeration form, I had submitted my Aadhaar, which had my correct age. I am not sure how the mistake regarding my age was made,' she says. On Tuesday, as the error gained countrywide attention, Siwan officials said, 'The BLO (booth level officer) has said that her age was entered as 124 by mistake during the process of filling the new form (Form-06). After the publication of the draft roll, the BLO pointed out the error in the electoral roll and contacted Minta Devi, who, as part of the correction process, submitted an application for rectification of the error in her electoral roll details through Form-08 on August 10. The claim will be processed within the prescribed time limit as per rules.' Minta currently lives in Chapra with her husband and children in a rented house. While she looks after the children, Dhananjay works as an e-rickshaw driver. 'My husband somehow manages to earn around Rs 15,000 a month,' she says. The family took loans of around Rs 2.5 lakh in the last one and a half years in Minta's name. 'Most of our earnings go into the repayment of that loan. The remaining money is spent on rent and household necessities,' Minta says. The family has since dropped the idea of taking another loan to fund the children's private school fees, deciding instead to focus on repaying the existing loan. 'We can't afford to pay their school fees in our current situation, but we haven't stopped their education completely. We have been giving our children home tuition through a private teacher, who charges Rs 1,000 a month,' Minta says.
Time of India
7 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
'124 Not Out': Minta Devi slams opposition for using her face on T-shirts
PATNA: Minta Devi, a 35-year-old from Bihar , who unexpectedly became the INDIA bloc's "vote chori" mascot after a data entry error pegged her age at 124, on Wednesday objected to the opposition using her name and photo on T-shirts to target the Union govt. "Politics is being done in my name. Who gave Priyanka Gandhi and others the right to display my face and name on their T-shirts?" asked Minta, a first-time voter from Siwan. She said the controversy had caused "mental torture" to her middle-class family. Minta explained she had applied online for a voter ID, submitting her Aadhaar as proof. A clerical error recorded her birth year as 1900 instead of 1990. The mistake came to her notice only after the opposition's "124 Not Out" campaign went viral. "This is my first voter ID card, and it has created such an uproar," she said, adding in jest that if her official age was 124, the govt should extend her old-age benefits. "Since the Election Commission has made me a grandmother, PM Modi should give me something too," she quipped. She stressed she wanted no part in any campaign and sought to be left out of the row.
Time of India
13-08-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
‘124 Not Out' row: Siwan woman slams political use of her photo
Patna: The Bihar woman at the centre of controversy — and the icon of opposition protests on Parliament premises Tuesday over her voter-list age of 124 years — is very upset. After finding out that she figured on the T-shirts of the opposition leaders during the protests, Minta reacted sharply on Wednesday and asked who authorised Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi to become her well-wishers and use her photograph publicly. "Politics is being done in my name. Who gave Priyanka the right to display my face and name on their T-shirts? They are trying to act like my well-wishers unnecessarily. It's none of their business. I do not like this as the controversy has caused mental torture to my middle-class family for no fault of mine," Minta, a homemaker, told reporters. The Siwan woman said she had applied for a voter ID card through a cybercafe and given her Aadhaar card for enrolment. She said she has never voted in life. "Pehli baar voter ID card banwaya to bawal hin ho gaya (First time I got my voter ID card made and there has been uproar everywhere)," she said. The wife of Dhananjay Singh from Arjanpur under Siswan Kalan block in Siwan said she came to know about the error a few days back and demanded that those who committed it should rectify it. She said her date of birth is July 15, 1990 and she got an EPIC made for the first time despite several attempts in the past to register as a voter. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like NRIs Living In Portugal Are Eligible For INR 2 Lakh Monthly Pension. Invest 18K/Month Get Offer Undo She has been registered in the draft electoral roll as a voter in Daraundha assembly constituency. The opposition MPs, including Congress's Priyanka, while protesting against the Election Commission's special intensive revision (SIR) of the voter lists in Bihar, donned T-shirts with the picture and name of Minta Devi in front and '124 Not Out' written on the back. According to the Election Commission, Minta Devi had filled the online application form for adding her name. "After the publication of the draft list, she was contacted by the BLO pointing out the inaccuracy in the electoral list. Thereafter, under the corrective process, she has applied for correction of the error in her electoral list through Form-8 on Aug 10. As per the rules, the claim received by Minta Devi will be executed within the prescribed period," the EC press communique said. However, Minta said jokingly that when the officials made her 124 years old, the govt should give her the benefits of its schemes like old-age pension. "Jab chunav aayog ne dadi banaya hai to Modiji (PM) kuch den (when EC has made me a grandmother, PM Modi should give me some benefits, too," she told reporters. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
Mint
13-08-2025
- Politics
- Mint
Minta Devi, face of Congress' T-shirt protest against ‘vote chori', fumes: ‘Who gave Rahul Gandhi the right…'
'Vote chori' row: Minta Devi, a woman from Bihar's Siwan district, hit out at Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and other INDIA bloc MPs for wearing t-shirts featuring her during 'voter theft' protest at Parliament House on 12 August. She angrily asked who gave them the right to do so while dismissing the opposition's use of her name and age for political motives. "I came to know about this 2-4 days back... Who are they (Opposition MPs) to me? Who is Priyanka Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi to me? Who gave them the right to wear T-shirts featuring me?... I think there are discrepancies (in the list)... I did not get anyone's (from the administration) phone call... Why are they becoming my well-wisher over my age?... This should not be done, I do not want this..." Minta stated. She added, 'I want my details to be corrected... Whoever entered the details, did they do so with their eyes closed?... If I am 124 years old in the eyes of the government, why are they not giving me old age pension? My Aadhaar Card mentions 15-07-1990 as my date of birth." The INDIA bloc MPs wore '124 Not Out' t-shirts with her name to showcase errors in the electoral roll and alleged discrepancies in the voter list. She was named Gandhi's presentation on the alleged vote theft issue. Her alleged age is nine years more than Ethel Caterham, 115, the verified oldest person in the world. Minta, 35, further mentioned that if the government considers her age as 124-years-old, they should begin offering the benefits of an old-age pension to her. She has reportedly been registered on the state's voter list, marking her first time on the electoral roll despite being eligible to vote for several years. Minta declared her birthdate as July 15, 1990, and submitted the necessary documents to support her application for enrollment. In poll-bound Bihar, there have been widespread protests over the revision of the voter list, with parties from the INDIA bloc accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of working in favour of the ruling BJP by selectively deleting voters' names to benefit them. The ECI has firmly denied these accusations, asserting that the revision of the voter rolls was carried out with complete transparency.
New Indian Express
13-08-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
‘125-yr-old' Bihar voter sparks row
PATNA: Minta Devi, a resident of Bihar's Siwan district, was thrilled to receive her Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) last month, allowing her to vote for the first time. However, her excitement turned to dismay when she noticed her voter ID listed her birth year as 1900—making her 125 years old—instead of the correct 1990 as per her Aadhaar card. The discrepancy came to light after Opposition leaders, including Congress' Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, highlighted the case during protests against Bihar's electoral roll revision. Some even wore T-shirts featuring Minta's photo with the slogan 'At 124 and not out.' Minta, who had applied for the voter card online in April, blamed a 'technical glitch' for the error. 'I had applied for my voter card through the online system in April with all the required information,' she told this reporter over the phone on Tuesday. She, however, hastened to add that it was not her fault that her EPIC card listed her wrong date of birth. 'My date of birth has been mentioned 'incorrectly' in the voter card due to a technical glitch, but it should be rectified immediately,' she said, adding that only then would she be eligible to exercise her franchise for the first time. Her husband Dhananjay Kumar Singh, an auto-rickshaw driver by profession, revealed that her wife had applied for a new voter card from her in-laws' address at Arjanipur, Siswa Khurd village under Darauda Assembly constituency in Siwan district.
