Patna: JD(U) MP from Banka Girdhari Yadav said on Wednesday the Election Commission (EC) has no practical knowledge about Bihar or its history and geography and has imposed the special intensive revision (SIR) on the state in the rainy season, when people are busy with agricultural activities.LJP (RV) chief Chirag Paswan and BJP politician and Union minister Giriraj Singh defended the process on Wednesday,The Banka MP said the one-month limit for submitting documents for voter list revision was impractical. July 25 is the deadline to submit forms along with supporting documents.JD(U) MLA from Parbatta Sanjeev Kumar, too, raised concerns and said many poor people from his constituency who are working outside Bihar were facing problems filling their enumeration forms with the documents required.Yadav said it took 10 days for him to arrange the relevant documents and asked what would happen to his son’s voting right as he was in the US. He added that at least six months should be given for this process. However, he said it was his personal opinion and he did not care what the party was saying on the issue. “But this is the truth. If I cannot speak the truth, then why have I become an MP,” he said.The Parbatta MLA, meanwhile, questioned the timing of SIR and said a large number of people from Bihar work in other states. “How will they be able to participate in the SIR process in such a short time,” he asked, adding that the process should have started by Holi.The ECI says SIR is necessary to remove the names of those who are either deceased or have migrated to other places, or registered twice.The opposition has alleged that the process targets voters from marginalised and poor communities who don’t possess the documents ECI requires as it has excluded Aadhaar and EPIC for voter verification.However, Union minister Chirag Paswan accused the opposition of deliberately spreading misinformation about SIR to suit their political narrative. “It is beyond my understanding what the opposition really wants. Is it not correct that after the parliamentary elections they complained about the voter list? They claimed the same thing after the Maharashtra elections. Now, the solution is SIR only. It is not the first time SIR is happening,” he said.Union minister Giriraj Singh accused the opposition of politicising a constitutionally mandated process. “They crush the Constitution but take Babasaheb’s name. They are worried about the Rohingyas, the Bangladeshis. That’s why they are scared,” he alleged.
