Bihar: CPI(ML) Liberation to hold protest on Independence Day against 'discrepancies' in SIR

Patna: CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya on Sunday announced that his party will hold a country-wide agitation on Independence Day to protest against alleged discrepancies in the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar.

Addressing a press conference, Bhattacharya accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of becoming a 'hurdle' in the functioning of the democratic machinery, and said 'Kendriya Chunav Aayog' now deserves to be called 'Kendriya Chunauti Aayog'. "To highlight the challenges we are facing because of the attitude of the election commission, our party will hold a country-wide 'Save Constitution and Save Democracy' agitation on August 15", Bhattacharya said.

"If 2024 was about selective 'Vote Chori' (vote theft), what we are now witnessing in Bihar is perhaps nothing short of daylight robbery. The Supreme Court's advice about the inclusion of documents and disclosure of data has been stubbornly rejected by the EC while preparing draft electoral rolls in Bihar, he alleged.

He said all constituents of the INDIA bloc will also launch 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar from August 17 to August 31 against the SIR exercise, he said.

"It is now an open EC versus the people of India challenge: stop us if you can! Can the people of Bihar accept and win the challenge? 'Kendriya Chunav Ayog' deserves to be called 'Kendriya Chunauti Ayog'. This August, can we repeat what our predecessors had done during the historic Quit India movement in August 1942?" he asked.