After backlash, BJP corporator withdraws plea to drop Padma Shri awardee Haji Ramakdu from voter list

Ahmedabad: Facing backlash for filing an application to remove the name of well-known Dholak player Mir Haji Kasam, popularly known as Haji Ramakdu, from the voter list in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the BJP leader and Junagadh corporator withdrew his objection on Thursday.

The BJP government was left red faced after Kasam’s name appeared in the list of Padma Shri recipients on the eve of Republic Day announced by the central government. On January 13, BJP corporator Sanjay Manvar of Junagadh Municipal Corporation filed an objection to the inclusion of his name in the electoral rolls. The reason he gave was "absence/permanent relocation."

Deputy district election officer, Junagadh, N D Dhula, told DH that the matter was settled on Thursday after Manvar withdrew his objection. "Our BLO (block level officer) had included him the list after completing verification process. When someone files objection (under Form -7), the burden of proof lies on the objector. In this matter, the objector withdrew his objection."While the BJP has remained tightlipped about the controversy, the Congress criticised the government for "conspiring to remove people from voters' list in the name of religion." Gujarat Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi in a statement said, "BJP corporator is seeking to remove the name of Haji Ramakdu, the pride of Saurashtra, Junagadh as well as the nation. This is the height of trickery in the name of SIR."At the receiving end following the controversy, the BJP corporator Manvar on Wednesday told local media that he was only trying to ensure that "no one else in his (Kasam's) name misuses the right to vote." He added, "Kasambhai is a the pride of the nation." Despite repeated attempts, state BJP spokesperson didn't comment.

Earlier, similar controversy had hit the state after form was filed to delete the voter ID of Padma Shri awardee Shahabuddin Rathod, a noted scholar, teacher and humourist. On January 24, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi criticised the SIR exercise in Gujarat in a post on X.He stated, "Wherever there is SIR, there is vote theft. What is being done in Gujarat in the name of SIR is not an administrative process but a premeditated, organized, and strategic vote theft. The most shocking and dangerous thing is that thousands upon thousands of objections have been filed under the same name." He also alleged that votes were being deleted from specific communities and Congress-supporting booths.