“Will The ECI Provide Train Tickets For Migrants?” — Manoj Jha Slams Bihar Voter Drive As “Dark Spell For Democracy”
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RJD MP Manoj Jha has moved the Supreme Court docket towards the ECI’s Bihar voter record revision, alleging mass disenfranchisement of marginalised teams. He known as the rushed course of exclusionary and a risk to democracy.
New Delhi: At this time, on July 7, the Election Fee of India (ECI) is dealing with heavy criticism from Opposition leaders over its ongoing revision of the voter record in Bihar.
The method, generally known as the Particular Intensive Revision (SIR), has develop into controversial particularly because the state prepares for meeting elections later this yr.
Former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi had earlier described the voter record course of because the “actual comfortable underbelly” of the ECI.
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Now, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Jha has approached the Supreme Court docket, alleging that the brand new course of is resulting in the removing of huge numbers of voters, particularly from marginalised communities.
The Supreme Court docket will quickly hear 5 petitions, together with these filed by Manoj Jha, Mahua Moitra, Yogendra Yadav, and the Affiliation for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The petitions problem the legality and timing of the voter record revision and declare it’s being executed in a rushed and non-transparent approach.
That is the primary such intensive voter revision drive in Bihar since 2003. Mr. Jha advised NDTV that this whole train seems like a risk to democracy.
He mentioned,
“It is a darkish spell for democracy,”
He additional questioned the sudden urgency of the method, saying,
“Why was this train not undertaken within the final 22 years? What consultations have been held with political events? Did the ECI conduct any feasibility research?”
He criticised the dearth of public and political dialogue across the course of, including that many Biharis work in different states and will not be capable of confirm their voter particulars throughout the monsoon season.
Mr. Jha mentioned,
“Are you assuming a Bihari working in Surat is a voter of Surat? I obtained my Delhi voter identification card solely after 15 years, regardless of holding a Bihar voter card all through,”
In response to the ECI, varieties have been distributed to 87 per cent of voters, however solely 14.18 per cent had submitted them by July 5. This raised critical considerations about potential mass disenfranchisement.
Mr. Jha argued that the method is flawed and unfair, particularly since generally held paperwork like Aadhaar and ration playing cards will not be being accepted as legitimate ID proofs.
He added,
“Within the monsoon season, with huge migration and widespread documentation points, that is an exclusionary and non-inclusive course of,”
citing rural areas like Seemanchal and Nalanda as examples.
The ADR has warned that almost three crore voters — notably from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and migrant teams — might not have the paperwork required for this verification.
Mr. Jha rejected the ECI’s declare of transparency and criticised its lack of engagement with opposition voices.
He mentioned,
“It’s a monologue, not a dialogue,”
Mr. Jha additionally identified that the timeline for finishing this revision — simply 25 days — is unrealistic and harmful for voter rights.
He warned,
“With solely four-five volunteers per sales space, has the ECI checked their backgrounds? In elections the place margins are 4,000-5,000 votes, even just a few deletions can change the end result,”
He additionally recalled points with postal ballots within the 2020 Bihar elections that stay unresolved.
To make the method extra inclusive, the RJD has urged permitting Aadhaar playing cards as legitimate proof and giving extra time for verification.
Mr. Jha burdened that the Supreme Court docket, in its 1995 ruling in Lal Babu Hussein vs Electoral Registration Officer, had clarified that
“the burden of proving citizenship lies with the State.”
He additionally alleged that the timing of the SIR, throughout the troublesome monsoon season and solely months after a earlier voter record revision, appears politically motivated.
He requested,
“The ECI claims it’s together with younger voters and eradicating ghost voters or unlawful migrants, however the place’s the proof? Why rush this in 25 days except there’s a pre-verified record with official stamps?”
Including that individuals are dropping religion within the ECI, Mr. Jha remarked:
“The ECI should maintain a press convention and fulfill public considerations. Talking by means of unnamed ‘sources’ will not be what a constitutional physique does.”
His petition seeks to cease the SIR course of altogether. He’s hopeful that the Supreme Court docket will intervene.
He added,
“Will the ECI present practice tickets for migrants? No less than reserve sleeper class? There’s an entire lack of know-how of floor realities,”
Mr. Jha additionally touched upon the latest homicide of businessman Gopal Khemka, criticising the Bihar authorities’s failure to keep up regulation and order.
He mentioned,
“This was not an remoted incident. Hardly a day passes with out experiences of dacoity, homicide, or rape in Bihar. That is greater than a breakdown of regulation and order – it’s a collapse of governance,”
He questioned the position of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and the central authorities.
He requested,
“Are BJP and Nitish Kumar companions in governance or companions in crime?”
calling for stronger police accountability and quicker judicial processes.
He concluded,
“At this time, as an alternative of the rule of regulation, we’re seeing the rule of criminals in Bihar,”
Commenting on the growing communal polarisation, Mr. Jha criticised the latest requires a “Hindu Rashtra” made by some public figures.
He mentioned,
“Plurality is the muse of our existence, of [BR] Ambedkar’s imaginative and prescient. Communal polarisation goes towards the spirit of the Structure. We should not give legitimacy to such divisive agendas,”
He urged individuals to deal with actual points resembling unemployment and healthcare as an alternative of divisive non secular rhetoric.
He additionally condemned incidents of violence associated to language and cultural identification, such because the assault on a shopkeeper in Maharashtra for not talking Marathi.
He mentioned,
“These unaware of historical past ought to keep in mind the struggling of the Nineteen Sixties. It was by means of dialogue that we emerged from that part, however now we’re going backwards, preventing over language, faith, meals habits, and imagined threats,”
In response to Mr. Jha, languages ought to be seen as a method to carry individuals collectively.
He mentioned,
“Languages are a bond of sisterhood,”
stressing that these cultural hyperlinks are stored alive by the individuals and never the federal government. He additionally criticised the state for its weak response in such instances.
“The state’s lenient response – detaining and rapidly bailing out perpetrators – displays a troubling political silence.”
In conclusion, Mr. Jha mentioned the RJD will hold preventing in court docket to cease the SIR and save the democratic rights of voters in Bihar.
He mentioned,
“Disenfranchisement on this scale can critically harm democracy,”
He urged the ECI to behave with extra openness and duty, and demanded higher governance and regulation enforcement from the Bihar authorities.
He warned,
“Our nation can’t afford to regress,”
underlining the significance of unity and constitutional values in these troublesome occasions.
