Bihar's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief, Sanjay Saraogi, launched a sharp attack on opposition parties on Thursday, accusing them of questioning the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls with the intent of protecting "infiltrators." His comments came against the backdrop of the SIR exercise being conducted in 11 states, including the poll-bound West Bengal.
New Year Puja and Political Pledge
Sanjay Saraogi made these remarks after performing darshan and puja at the Mahavir temple near Patna Junction on New Year's Day. Speaking to reporters, he stated that he prayed for the well-being and prosperity of Bihar's people. He also pledged that the BJP would remain dedicated to serving the state's interests and growing stronger in the process.
Defending the Revision, Targeting the Opposition
Addressing the controversy surrounding the SIR, which includes allegations of using discarded software to delete voters' names centrally while bypassing booth-level officers, Saraogi asserted that the opposition was deliberately misleading the public. He pointed to reports of large-scale voter name deletions in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal to argue that the issue was being unfairly politicized.
"The assembly elections were held in Bihar, but the opposition parties kept on chanting SIR-SIR-SIR and they were completely routed in the state. In fact, it is not an issue with the common people," Saraogi said.
He posed pointed questions to the opposition: "Do the opposition parties want the Bangladeshi, Rohingya and other infiltrators to cast their votes in the polls? Do they also want the names of those who have migrated, or have changed their addresses, to be included in the voters’ lists?"
Claiming No Issues in Bihar, Predicting West Bengal Outcome
The BJP state president maintained that there have been no significant complaints in Bihar regarding wrongful deletions from the electoral rolls. He accused the opposition of manufacturing an issue for political gain. "The opposition is just trying to make all this into an issue for the sake of it. They want to win elections with the votes of infiltrators," he alleged.
Confident of the public's support, Saraogi predicted a grim future for opposition parties in the upcoming West Bengal elections. "People have read the designs of the opposition. It is certain that the opposition will be wiped out in West Bengal too. Their thinking is in opposition to that of people, and it will be the cause of their total decimation in the coming polls," he concluded.
