Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel hit out at Opposition parties for their ‘contradictory’ stance on voter list revision. In response, CPI’s Binoy Viswam accused the BJP-led government of undermining democracy and people’s voting rights.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Wednesday accused Opposition parties of adopting contradictory positions on electoral roll revision, alleging that leaders who had previously demanded the removal of duplicate and bogus voter entries were now opposing the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR). In a post on X, Patel said Opposition leaders had repeatedly raised concerns over discrepancies in voter lists and called for bogus names and duplicate entries to be removed to protect electoral integrity. “One cannot demand pure, error-free voter lists and simultaneously oppose the statutory mechanism designed to achieve it,” Patel said. He described the SIR as a transparent exercise involving due process, doorstep verification and structured appeal mechanisms, adding that it was intended to remove entries of deceased and migrated voters while ensuring that eligible citizens remained enrolled. Patel said democratic integrity required consistency and adherence to facts rather than what he termed the opportunistic politicisation of the process.
Opposition Alleges Attack on Democracy
Meanwhile, CPI Kerala State Secretary Binoy Viswam defended the Opposition’s proposed ‘Mission to Restore Democracy’ and the proposed INDIA Plus group, alleging that democracy was under severe attack under the BJP-led government. Speaking in Thiruvananthapuram, Viswam accused the RSS and the BJP of undermining democratic institutions and attempting to deny people their voting rights. “There is no reason to think twice about that because the RSS and the BJP have no faith in democracy and no trust in the power of the people,” he said. Viswam said the Opposition had to fight to defend democracy and voting rights, adding that the struggle would continue until those rights were protected.
Congress Leaders Back Rahul Gandhi, Students
In Kolkata, West Bengal Congress president Subhankar Sarkar expressed support for Congress leader Rahul Gandhi following his press conference, describing him as the voice of people facing hardship, marginalised communities and students. “You will see Rahul Gandhi standing firm in every situation, through every storm and on every front. Rahul Gandhi is the voice of suffering people, the voice of the downtrodden and the student community,” Sarkar said. He also warned that public officials involved in wrongdoing would be held accountable under the Constitution, regardless of their position or influence.
In Delhi, Congress MP Jebi Mather said party representatives had accompanied the alleged victims to Parliament Street Police Station and held discussions with the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police regarding their complaint. Mather said the police had sought 24 hours to examine CCTV footage before deciding on further action. “Now the police have asked us for 24 hours to check the CCTV footage, and then, if an FIR is not launched, it has already been declared by the national president of NSUI that there will be a big protest,” she said. Mather added that students and young people would continue their protest and said Rahul Gandhi was supporting them. (ANI)
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