ECI conducted 'surgical strike' of SIR to stop change in Bihar: CPI(M-L) Liberation

On 19 August, Tuesday, CPI (M-L) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya — participating in the INDIA bloc's concerted three-month campaign against the Bihar special intensive revision (SIR) of roles and the 'vote chori' in previous elections — accused the Election Commission of carrying out a "surgical strike" on the electoral rolls ahead of the 2025 assembly elections that are meant to usher in change for Bihar.

During a press conference with Mahila Congress chief Alka Lamba, held as part of the Voter Adhikar Yatra across the state, Bhattacharya suggested that people from all walks of life in Bihar now recognise that a "conspiracy of vote chori" is underway under the guise of an SIR.

Further, Bhattacharya — who joined Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav in the jeep for Day 3 of the Yatra — asserted that Bihar is currently dominated by criminals thanks to lack of governance. He highlighted a recent incident in Patna where "criminals entered a hospital... and shot dead a person".

"This election is for change in Bihar, but the Election Commission (EC) conducted the surgical strike of SIR on it to cause a disturbance. In this process, people's names started getting deleted — but the public was told that only the names of infiltrators will be deleted," he said.

Bihar SIR: 789 pages, 1 B.I.G. lie, 0 foreigners

Bhattacharya emphasised that among the 65 lakh names affected, "not a single infiltrator" is on the list, but living people were marked as dead and names of migrant labourers working outside the state were also erased from voter rolls through the SIR.

"Today, every section of Bihar has understood that a conspiracy of 'vote theft' is being hatched in the name of SIR," he said.

Youthful supporters of the Voter Adhikar Yatra protest against the Bihar SIR

However, Bhattacharya noted, the Voter Adhikar Yatra has become a new symbol of hope for people in Bihar.

"This election in Bihar will be an election of change. Last year, we did a 13-day padyatra from Nawada to Patna. Just before that, a Dalit colony in Nawada had been set on fire and they were evicted from their land," he said, in support of his stance, noting the anger against the government's failures among the masses.

Reflecting on his padyatra experiences, Bhattacharya added, "During the padyatra, we saw that there is a lot of resentment among the Dalits. Most of the incidents of Dalit oppression are in the Gaya district. Even today, the situation here is such that if the workers of Musahar caste ask for their wages, their hands are chopped off."

Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and RJD leader (and former deputy chief minister of Bihar) Tejashwi Yadav made their way to Gaya district on the Voter Adhikar Yatra yesterday, 18 August, and also have been addressing rallies on their route. Earlier today, Gandhi reiterated that he, Yadav and Bhattacharya are determined not to allow a single vote to be stolen in Bihar.

Both Yadav and Gandhi have been highlighting instances of apparent electoral fraud in Bihar's rolls as well as in the 2024 polls conducted in Bengaluru and Maharashtra.

Voter Adhikar Yatra: Not a single ‘vote theft’ in Bihar by ECI, BJP, vow Rahul, Tejashwi, Dipankar

Bhattacharya, for his part, went on to criticised the current BJP-JDU administration, saying that after 20 years in office, despite many promises, conditions in Bihar have deteriorated.

Bhattacharya said that unemployment, poverty and migration have surged in the state, all worsened by a mounting debt crisis.

Alka Lamba chimed in to add her party's criticism of the Election Commission, claiming that it was due to the INDIA bloc's campaign with the Voter Adhikar Yatra that the BJP had had the chief election commissioner to hold a press conference, during which the Commission "got trapped" in its own statements.

CEC Gyanesh Kumar and some of his more embarrassing replies

Lamba remarked, "No matter how much these people try to scare Rahul Gandhi, he is not going to be scared."

She continued, "Rahul Gandhi has clearly said: 'Wherever the vote thieves are, we will find them'; they will not be spared."

She further said, "Rahul Gandhi did Bharat Jodo Yatra and Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. Now he is doing Voter Adhikar Yatra to save the right to vote in the country. From the road to Parliament, we have only one motto to echo: 'Vote chor, gaddi chhorh [the vote thieves must give up their seat]'."

Lamba explained that the Congress party's main demand is for the Election Commission to release the electronic voter list and provide the CCTV footage from the polling stations. However, the Congress and other INDIA bloc parties allege, the Commission is reluctant to share this information with them — but happily does so with the BJP.

On Tuesday, the yatra made its way from Wazirganj (in Gaya district) to Nawada the same day, with plans to conclude in Patna with a large rally on 1 September.

The march is following a 'hybrid' approach — partly on foot and partly by vehicle — similar to the recent Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra that Rahul Gandhi led from Manipur to Mumbai before the Lok Sabha elections.

The schedule also includes stops in Nalanda, Sheikhpura, Lakhisarai, Munger, Bhagalpur, Katihar, Purnea, Araria, Supaul, Madhubani, Darbhanga, Sitamarhi, East Champaran, West Champaran, Gopalganj, Siwan, Chhapra and Ara.

Bihar: “Call it a ‘special invasive reconstruction’”