Election Commission Says 3 Lakh Voters Added After SIR in Bihar as per Rules
The Wire Staff
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After the Congress flagged an increase of 3 lakh voters in Bihar, noting that after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls there were 7.42 crore voters which had risen to 7.45 crore voters when the Election Commission announced the poll schedule in the state, the poll body has responded and said that the increase was due to the enrollment of new voters.
Election Commission officials said that according to election rules under the Representation of the People Act, 1950 electors' names can be added up to 10 days before the last date of filing nominations. The poll body said that the addition of 3 lakh voters was because of the forms received from new electors up to October 10 while the last date of nomination was October 20 in Bihar.
For phase one of the polls, which was on November 6, nominations closed on October 17, while for phase two, held on November 11, nominations closed on October 20.
The Congress had on Saturday alleged vote theft in Bihar through the addition of new voters after the SIR. It had pointed to the 7.42 crore voters on Bihar’s electoral rolls after the SIR and the increase by 3 lakh to 7.45 crore when the poll schedule was announced.
The results of the Bihar assembly elections 2025 saw the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) registering a sweeping victory in the state winning 202 of the 243 seats. The opposition Mahagathbandhan was reduced to only 35 seats. While the Congress won only 6 seats, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) which was the single largest party in the 2020 elections was reduced to its lowest tally in a decade of only 25 seats.
After a review meeting in Delhi on Saturday, Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said that the results were "unbelievable."
"A 90% strike rate is unprecedented in Indian history," he said to reporters.
"We are collecting data and conducting a thorough analysis, and within 1 to 2 weeks, we will provide concrete proof. This entire electoral process is completely questionable. The Election Commission is totally one-sided; there is no transparency."
Earlier on Friday, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi had said that the results were "truly shocking."
"This result in Bihar is truly shocking. We could not achieve victory in an election that was unfair from the very beginning," he said.
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