New Delhi: Amid the opposition’s criticism of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar in both houses of Parliament, Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar defended the exercise, asserting that reforms are essential for democracy.
Speaking to ANI, Majumdar said, “I believe reforms are very necessary for democracy. You only need to bring one document, not all of them… I think if such reforms do not happen in democracy, you won’t even know how many of our citizens voted and how many people from outside voted…”
He noted that such exercises are important to determine the number of illegal voters.
Earlier, more than 52.30 lakh voters were not found at their registered addresses during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, the Election Commission of India (ECI) said on Tuesday.
According to the poll body, 52,30,126 electors, amounting to 6.62 per cent of the state’s total registered voters, were either deceased, had shifted permanently, were enrolled at multiple locations, or were untraceable.
Of the total, nearly 18.5 lakh electors were reported as deceased, 26 lakh had permanently shifted, and nearly 7.5 lakh electors were found to be enrolled at multiple places, and around 11,000 voters were not traceable.
The ECI has shared the list of these names with the 1.5 Lakh Booth Level Agents (BLAs) appointed by district presidents of 12 major political parties in Bihar. These BLAs have been actively cooperating in determining the status of electors who could not be found at their addresses.
ECI questions critics
Meanwhile ECI also questioned its critics, saying, “The Constitution of India is the mother of Indian democracy….So, fearing these things, should the Election Commission, getting misled by some people, pave the way for some to cast fake votes in the name of deceased voters, voters who have migrated permanently, voters who have got their votes registered at two places, fake voters or foreign voters, going against the Constitution, first in Bihar, then in the entire country?…Isn’t the authentic voter list being prepared by the Election Commission through a transparent process, the foundation stone for fair elections and a strong democracy?”
Election Commission of India questions its critics, saying, "The Constitution of India is the mother of Indian democracy….So, fearing these things, should the Election Commission, getting misled by some people, pave the way for some to cast fake votes in the name of deceased… pic.twitter.com/CMowZNCdKI
— ANI (@ANI) July 24, 2025
“On these questions, sometime or the other, all of us and all the citizens of India will have to think deeply, going beyond political ideologies. And perhaps the most appropriate time for this essential thinking for all of you has now arrived in India, it added”
(With inputs from ANI)
