‘EC failed to answer our questions’: Opposition castigates poll body in joint press conference

The Opposition INDIA bloc has slammed the Election Commission amid the ongoing vote theft allegations and the Bihar SIR controversy. Addressing a press conference on Monday, leaders from the RJD, CPI, Samajwadi Party, DMK, TMC, and other parties questioned the Election Commission over vote theft claims and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar.

In a raging joint press conference by the Opposition parties, CPI-M leader John Brittas accused the Election Commission of being “biased” and “unfair”. “We feel that EC is biased, selective, and unfair,” he added.

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Opposition accuses CEC Gyanesh Kumar of acting like a BJP spokesperson 

Opposition parties also accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of acting like a BJP representative, who, according to them, failed to answer their questions on the SIR of electoral rolls and issues related to voter list irregularities.

This came hours after the Election Commission criticised the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for using “improper words” such as “vote chori”.

Oppn questions ECI for not following SC’s directions 

During CEC’s press conference, DMK MP Tiruchi Siva said, ” The CEC has given no clarification regarding the recent Supreme Court direction that it should publish details of all 65 lakh voters. Our concern is why CEC is carrying out SIR in Bihar in a hasty manner…why is the addition of new voters abnormally low?… This issue is not about the political parties but the common man in the country.”

“How is it possible that dead people are in the draft list and living people are on the deleted list? How can a dead person be on a draft list? It can only happen because the BLOs were signing the form themselves…In just two districts of Bihar – Darbhanga and Kaimur, the BLO has marked “not recommended” for 10 to 12%,” said TMC’s Mahua Moitra, addressing the INDIA bloc press conference at the Constitution Club.

Oppn questions SIR exercise 

“Yesterday, after listening to the CEC Gyanesh Kumar, I felt his real name should be ‘Agyanesh’ Kumar. He spoke only of ignorance. Either he is a fool, or he is deliberately pretending to be one. Or perhaps he thinks we are fools. We were shocked to hear such foolish remarks. He did not answer a single question put to him. Within just one month, from 25th June to 25th July, you cut 65 lakh votes in Bihar under SIR. You say this is a ‘Special Intensive Revision (SIR)’. Yet, in this revision, not a single person in Bihar was able to cast their vote. What kind of SIR is this? You said 22 lakh people had died, and their names were removed,” said AAP MP Sanjay Singh, addressing the INDIA bloc press conference at the Constitution Club.