Polls can be held based on 2024 electoral rolls: D. Raja

Underlining the danger that several lakh voters could face exclusion from the electoral rolls under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) being undertaken in Bihar by the Election Commission, Communist Party of India (CPI) General Secretary D. Raja urged the panel to revisit their decision and postpone revision.

Editorial | ​Careful curation: On Bihar’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls

Addressing a press conference at the conclusion of the three-day CPI National Council Meeting in Delhi, Mr. Raja said, “The Election Commission has made it clear that they will stick to SIR despite several problems that we collectively flagged during our meeting on Wednesday. The Election Commission is a Constitutional body and I would urge them to act in accordance with the Constitution.”

Mr. Raja said that migrant workers and poorer sections of the electorate are particularly in danger of losing their voting rights. “There is very little time available ahead of the assembly polls scheduled for October-November. Several parts of the state are flooded. The EC would be well advised to postpone the revision. Elections can be held on the basis of the electoral rolls that were used for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls,” he said. 

Opinion: Socialism, secularism are the spirit of the Constitution

Mr. Raja also hit out at the RSS in the context of General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale’s remarks calling for amending the Preamble of the Constitution and removal of the words “secular”  and “socialist”  that were inserted during the 19-month National Emergency. “There was tremendous pressure on B.R. Ambedkar to declare India a theocratic nation. He emphatically rejected the demand. The RSS continues with its fascistic agenda that sees India as a monolith. We call upon all social democratic parties to resist this attack on the Constitution,” Mr. Raja said.