India’s Opposition Protests Against Electoral Roll Revision

India’s opposition parties held an unprecedented protest on Monday, demanding the revocation of a controversial voter’s list revision in Bihar which is one of the nation’s poorest states, where crucial elections are set for November. Critics warn the move could strip millions of citizens—especially from vulnera

Hundreds of opposition lawmakers and supporters gathered near Parliament, attempting to march toward the Election Commission office in New Delhi. Police intervened and blocked their route and temporarily detaining some top leaders, including a the most senior Congress political figure Rahul Gandhi.

The dispute centers on the Election Commission’s fast-tracked revision of Bihar’s nearly 80 million-strong voter roll. The process requires citizens to submit strict documentation, such as birth certificates, passports, or matriculation records—documents that are often unavailable in rural Bihar, where literacy rates remain among the lowest in India.

Opposition leaders argue this could disproportionately affect minorities, particularly Muslims, by excluding them from the electoral process. India lacks a universal national ID, and the widely used Aadhaar card is not accepted as valid proof for this revision.

While the Election Commission insists that no eligible voter will be left out, it defends the “intensive revision” as a routine measure to ensure accuracy and prevent the inclusion of undocumented immigrants. Officials say that 49.6 million voters already verified in a similar 2003 update are exempt from submitting new documents, but that leaves almost 30 million potentially at risk.

Bihar’s political stakes are high. The state has historically been governed only through coalitions, and its results could influence the power balance in the national Parliament, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP depends on allies—including a key regional party from Bihar.

Supporters of the revision, including the BJP, claim it will remove deceased voters, update new registrations, and prevent illegal immigrants from Bangladesh from gaining voting rights. However, critics compare it to Assam’s controversial 2019 citizenship list, which rendered nearly 2 million people—many of them Muslims—effectively stateless.

Rahul Gandhi has further accused the Election Commission of allowing fraudulent voting in other states, citing alleged irregularities in Karnataka’s 2024 general election. The Commission dismissed his claims, emphasizing that accurate voter rolls are essential for free and fair elections.

With elections in Bihar only months away, the debate over the voter list revision is intensifying, drawing national attention to the future of Indian democracy and the inclusivity of its electoral system.

— Reporting by Naqsh News and other Agencies

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