EC stands for 'Election Chori': Rahul Gandhi targets poll body over Bihar SIR exercise

New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday asked whether the Election Commission (EC) has “completely become the ‘Election Chori’ (election theft) wing” of the BJP, as he alleged that the poll body was caught “red-handed” stealing votes in the name Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

Rahul’s latest salvo against the EC came as he cited an FIR filed against senior journalist Ajit Anjum following his reportage in which he claimed that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were filling out enumeration forms themselves and signing on behalf of voters in Bihar, while sharing a video on his YouTube channel.

“In Bihar, the Election Commission was caught red-handed stealing votes in the name of ‘SIR’. The job is theft, but the label is ‘SIR’ – and the one exposing it will face an FIR! Is the EC still the ‘Election Commission’, or has it completely turned into BJP’s ‘Election Chori’ (Vote Theft) wing?” he said on ‘X’ tagging Anjum's post.

The FIR against Anjum, who has been accused of spreading communal tensions", had also invited criticism from other parties and media bodies like the Delhi Union of Journalists (DUJ), Editors Guild of India (EGI) and Press Club of India (PCI).

The EC had attracted criticism for holding the SIR in Bihar just months before the Bihar polls and for seeking proof for date and place of birth and documents related to parents in some cases.

The Opposition has claimed that the SIR is akin to the National Registry of Citizens (NRC) exercise and aimed at disenfranchising the poor and migrant workers. The Opposition has also approached the Supreme Court against it.

Rahul, who had participated in a march to Bihar Chief Electoral Office (CEO) in Patna against the SIR along with other senior Opposition leaders on July 9, has been attacking the EC over Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly elections since last year. However, the EC has not acceded to his demand for machine readable electoral rolls used for Lok Sabha and Assembly polls and CCTV footage of polling day.