“Has EC become BJP's 'election chori' branch?” Rahul Gandhi on Bihar SIR

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on 17 July, Thursday, claimed that the Election Commission has been caught "red-handed" stealing votes in the name of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, and asked whether the poll body has completely become the BJP's “election chori branch”.

The EC has all along maintained that the revision, being held after 22 years, will cleanse the voters' list of ineligible people and duplicate entries, while still including those eligible to vote, as per the law.

Election Commission looking to blame political parties for exclusion of eligible voters?

Gandhi shared a post by Ajit Anjum, whose YouTube channel is running a series on special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.

"Election Commission in Bihar has been caught red-handed stealing votes in the name of 'SIR'. Work: just theft but name is 'SIR' and FIR will be lodged against the one who exposes it!" Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X.

बिहार में चुनाव आयोग 'SIR' के नाम पर रंगे हाथ वोट चोरी करता पकड़ा गया।

काम सिर्फ़ चोरी, नाम ‘SIR’ - पर्दाफाश करने वाले पर होगी FIR!

EC अब भी ‘Election Commission’ है या पूरी तरह BJP की ‘Election Chori’ शाखा बन चुका है?#VoteChori https://t.co/sigNsspa4a

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 17, 2025

'Is EC still 'Election Commission' or has it completely become BJP's 'Election Chori' branch?" the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha asked.

Anjum has been accused of spreading communal tensions in Begusarai district by the local administration.

He had denied the allegation and shared a screenshot of an FIR lodged against him.

बिहार के बेगूसराय में मेरे खिलाफ FIR
किए जाने की जानकारी आ रही है . FIR की कॉपी मुझे नहीं मिली है . मैं इंतज़ार कर रहा हूं. दो दिन पहले मैंने बलिया प्रखंड में ' SIR ' के लिए भरे जा रहे FORM में अनियमितता की रिपोर्टिंग की थी . मुझे स्थानीय BDO और SDO की तरफ से कॉल करके वीडियो… pic.twitter.com/uyPOBOv85E

— Ajit Anjum (@ajitanjum) July 14, 2025

बेगूसराय में दर्ज ये FIR एक पत्रकार के तौर पर मेरे लिए सर्टिफिकेट की तरह है . चुनाव आयोग के ' SIR ' पर खुलासे का ये अंजाम तो होना ही था .
इसी पोस्ट के कॉमेंट बॉक्स में मेरा वीडियो है . उस वीडियो में चुनाव आयोग की को खामियां दिख रही हैं , उनका जवाब देने की बजाय मुझ पर FIR कर दी… pic.twitter.com/agQsr5tivG

— Ajit Anjum (@ajitanjum) July 14, 2025

Opposition parties have asserted that the ongoing exercise will disfranchise crores of eligible Indian citizens for the want of citizenship documents.

On Wednesday, 16 July, chief election commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar thanked the eligible voters of Bihar for their active participation in the "much-needed" cleaning of the electoral rolls during SIR.

Kumar's remarks came in the backdrop of the Supreme Court hearing a clutch of pleas questioning the intent behind the SIR ahead of the assembly polls in the state later this year.

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