SIR row: Opposition making noise because '€˜they have something to hide'€™, says UP deputy CM

Lucknow, Nov 24 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Monday targeted opposition parties, alleging that those creating a furore over Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise "have something to hide".

Maurya, who served as co-incharge for the BJP in the recent Bihar Assembly elections, said in a post on his official X handle, "The parties making noise over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists have 'something to hide'. Bihar has proved that their position is weak." The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance swept the Bihar Assembly polls with a two-thirds majority, pushing the INDIA bloc to the margins.

Opposition leaders, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, have been accusing the government and the Election Commission of manipulating the SIR process.

On Saturday, Yadav alleged at a press conference that the BJP government and the Election Commission were conspiring to delete more than 50,000 names from voter lists in those Assembly segments where the Samajwadi Party and the INDIA bloc had won during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said, "We expect the Election Commission to remain impartial and address our complaints. But it is being said that after losing in 2024, the BJP and the Commission are focusing the most on West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh." The Election Commission has denied the allegations levelled by opposition partes. PTI COR KIS DV DV