Bihar: CPI(ML) Liberation to hold protest on I-Day against ''discrepancies'' in SIR

Patna, Aug 10 (PTI) CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya on Sunday announced that his party will hold a country-wide agitation on Independence Day to protest against alleged discrepancies in the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar.

Addressing a press conference here, Bhattacharya accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of becoming a 'hurdle' in the functioning of the democratic machinery, and said 'Kendriya Chunav Aayog' now "deserves to be called 'Kendriya Chunauti Aayog'." "To highlight the challenges we are facing because of the attitude of the election commission, our party will hold a country-wide 'Save Constitution and Save Democracy' agitation on August 15", Bhattacharya said.

"If 2024 was about selective 'vote chori' (vote theft), what we are now witnessing in Bihar is perhaps nothing short of daylight robbery. The Supreme Court's advice about the inclusion of documents and disclosure of data has been stubbornly rejected by the EC while preparing draft electoral rolls in Bihar," he alleged.

He said all constituents of the INDIA bloc will also launch 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar from August 17 to August 31 against the SIR exercise, he said.

"It is now an open EC versus the people of India challenge: stop us if you can! Can the people of Bihar accept and win the challenge? 'Kendriya Chunav Aayog' deserves to be called 'Kendriya Chunauti Aayog'. This August, can we repeat what our predecessors had done during the historic Quit India movement in August 1942?" he asked.

Can anyone explain the "statistical magic of SIR on the basis of the ECI's claims"?, he questioned.

"Just compare the EC communiques issued on July 19 and July 21, when the SIR was in its final phase, and the latest communique of August 8, which gives the final findings after the conclusion of the house-to-house enumeration phase.

"Till July 19, the EC communiques used the phrases 'probably deceased' and 'probably permanently shifted', but by July 21, the description changed to 'deceased electors reported so far' and 'permanently shifted electors reported so far'," the Left leader claimed.

Bhattacharya also alleged, "Till July 22, the figures were based on a total set of 7,16,04,102 enumeration forms received (of which 7,13,65,460 were digitised). The final findings cover a total of 7.24 crore enumeration forms. In other words, over the last few days of the enumeration phase, the base increased by 8 lakhs (considering all forms) or at most a little over one million." But the total count of 'probably deceased' or 'reportedly deceased' electors "jumped from 14,29,354 on July 19 to 16,55,407 on July 21 to 18,66,869 on July 22 to 22 lakh on conclusion", he claimed.

The permanently shifted category witnesses an even more "astounding leap", he said.

"A total of 19,74,246 voters on July 19 increased to 19,75,231 on July 21 to 26,01,031 voters on July 22, to 36 lakhs on conclusion! The figure nearly doubled in the final seven days," he claimed.

The CPI(ML) Liberation leader also pointed out, "Look at the category 'Electors not found at their addresses so far'. The figure was 41,64,814 on July 19, which jumped to 43,92,864 on July 21 and 52,30,126 the very next day." He claimed, "Consider the category of 'untraceable' electors. The count was 11,000 on July 19, and at 11,484 on July 21 and 22, before ending on a stunning record of 1 lakh in the final tally (as mentioned on July 24 ). The figure has now probably been merged with the permanently shifted category." But there is one figure which mysteriously recorded a decline, Bhattacharya said.

"Electors enrolled at multiple places stood at 7,50,213 on July 19, grew marginally to 7,50,742 on July 21-22, but dropped to 7 lakh in the final figures," he claimed. PTI PKD BDC