ECI's roll revision plan causing unease in Assam

Guwahati: The ECI's plan to roll out Special Intensive Revision (SIR) across the country is causing discomfort in Assam which is due for assembly election early next year.

The ruling BJP has expressed support for SIR with Rupam Goswami, convenor, state media department of the BJP, stating that during the ongoing exercise in Bihar, the Election Commission (ECI) discovered a large number of foreign nationals from Bangladesh, Nepal, and Myanmar listed in the state's electoral rolls. Most of these individuals were illegal migrants who work as labourers, and over the years, managed to get their names included in the voters' list through political patronage.

The BJP said the Congress, having relied on illegal Bangladeshi Muslim votes in the past elections, is now apprehensive about losing its vote bank as these ineligible voters were being identified and deleted from the list. During its rule, the Congress went so far as to label lakhs of Gorkhas and indigenous communities as "doubtful voters" and suspended their voting rights.


'Doubtful voter' is a category of voters in Assam who are disenfranchised for lack of citizenship. Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had recently said that voter list revision cannot stop the demographic changes in Assam.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, during his recent visit to Assam, has warned people about the voters' list revision. Alleging that the ECI and BJP were working together, Gandhi said, "Within four months in Maharashtra -- from Lok Sabha polls to the assembly polls -- one crore voters have increased. We sought the voters' list from the EC, but they are yet to provide it. We asked for the videos of the booths, but we were not given. The new voters voted for the BJP. In the Lok Sabha polls, our alliance won the polls. Then one crore voters come, and we lose the assembly polls."