Bihar CM Choudhary rejects Opposition's SIR allegations as baseless

Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary on Sunday rejected the Opposition's allegations over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the State's electoral rolls, describing the exercise as transparent and carried out in line with established rules.

Addressing a press conference in Patna, Mr. Choudhary said the Opposition had not been able to produce a single person who was a resident of Bihar and whose name had been struck off the roll. He said that during the SIR, entries already on the rolls were verified, including those of deceased persons, individuals who had permanently moved away, and voters registered at more than one place.

"During the SIR process, names of eligible voters were not removed; a full process for filing claims and objections was available," he said, adding that the exercise was conducted transparently and as per rules.

The Chief Minister said the Election Commission had put the 2003 electoral roll online so that eligible voters could check their old details during the 2025 SIR. Voter particulars, he added, were verified against prescribed documents, and following Supreme Court directives, the Aadhaar card was also accepted for identity verification. He noted that the court had clarified that while Aadhaar was acceptable for establishing identity, it did not amount to proof of citizenship.

Taking aim at Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Mr. Choudhary called both "princes" who tour Bihar only for tourism, and said Opposition leaders at the State and national levels had failed to present facts. He said the Election Commission had already clarified its position on the questions they had raised, and that any eligible person whose name was missing from the roll, or who had a genuine grievance, could use the prescribed procedure. No such complaint had been received so far, he said.

Mr. Yadav and Mr. Gandhi have been demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and fresh elections in five States, including Bihar and West Bengal, after a report claimed that two Election Commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, had formally recorded objections at least 14 times over the past 10 months.

Referring to a meeting of the three Election Commissioners, Mr. Choudhary said the Commission had made clear that its decisions were taken collectively. With that, he said, the position was clear and anyone alleging irregularities in the election must come forward with facts and supporting documents.

Dismissing the allegations as baseless, the Chief Minister said the Election Commission and the judiciary were vital institutions in a democratic framework, where people are sovereign and choose their representatives through their votes. He also said the country's development had gathered pace under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and alleged that the Opposition was unable to accept the rise of a poor family's son to the top post and was engaged in spreading confusion.