Amid the controversy over the Election Commission (EC)’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar — which has sparked confusion and fear among a large section of people, especially the poor, marginalised and minorities — the EC has written to Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of all states, directing them to begin preparations for a similar exercise. The matter is also being heard in the Supreme Court. Urdu dailies continued to spotlight these developments, calling the EC’s move a “veiled exercise to determine citizenship” or an “NRC through the backdoor” despite not having this remit.
Commenting on the Supreme Court’s move to allow the EC to carry on with the SIR in Bihar while giving it some crucial suggestions, the Hyderabad-based Siasat, in its July 11 leader, points out that the apex court has raised questions about the timing of the exercise, barely a few months before the Bihar Assembly polls. So, in case of disenfranchisement, an elector would not even have time to seek redressal to be able to vote in the polls, the editorial says. The court has also questioned the procedure to be followed by the EC before deleting names from voter lists.
Saying that the SIR, in the process of checking voters’ eligibility, is ascertaining citizenship, the daily notes that the top court also said that it is the jurisdiction of the Union Home Ministry and not the EC to determine whether an individual is a citizen or not. “The Opposition parties have raised similar concerns while questioning the SIR, which they fear would deprive many voters of exercising their franchise. Besides seeking documents that effectively determine citizenship of a voter (if not registered in the 2003 rolls), the poll body has even sought similar documents of the parents of such a voter (if born after July 1, 1987),” it states. “In a poor and backward state like Bihar, conducting the SIR in this manner has led to the EC being accused of shifting its goalpost — from updating and revising voter lists to establishing their citizenship, which in turn has triggered accusation that it is actually a bid to push the National Register of Citizens (NRC) through the backdoor.”
The EC’s bid not to include the Aadhaar card in the list of 11 documents it asked for the SIR also made its intent “suspect”, given that for every official transaction Aadhaar has been virtually made mandatory, the editorial says. The apex court’s suggestion to the EC to consider Aadhaar, voter card and ration card in the SIR — and explain the reasons if they could not be accepted for the process — is the major takeaway of the first hearing in the matter. “The writing on the wall for the EC is clear. Despite being an independent, constitutional body, its image has taken a beating in recent years. Besides levelling allegations of electoral irregularities, the Opposition has also accused it of working at the behest of the Central government,” the edit says. “The EC must operate under the constitutional and legal framework. It is accountable to the people of the country as elections are the lifeblood of a democracy, which could not be allowed to be undermined. The EC must review its decisions and take people, the key stakeholder of democracy, into confidence. The SIR must be conducted well before an election so that it could fulfil the imperatives of due process.”
ROZNAMA RASHTRIYA SAHARA
Referring to an anecdote recounted by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, of a Sangh leader who joked about stepping aside at 75 years of age and making way for others, the New Delhi edition of Rashtriya Roznama Sahara, in its July 14 editorial, says the statement has stirred a debate in political circles. Speaking at a function in Nagpur to release a biography of late RSS ideologue Moropant Pingle, Bhagwat noted that Pingle said: “When someone is felicitated at 75, it means your time is up, now step aside and let others do the work”. Several Opposition leaders sought to link Bhagwat’s statement to the fact that both he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are turning 75 soon (Bhagwat on September 11 and Modi on September 17).
The daily also notes that 75 has become somewhat of an age milestone for retirement in the BJP, with the examples of leaders like L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi in the recent past.
However, the edit says, this benchmark will not be applicable to Modi, pointing to a statement by Union Home Minister Amit Shah that Modi will continue as PM even after 75 and asserting that there was no upper age limit in the BJP’s constitution.
“The RSS chief’s signal is not personal but ideological,” it notes. “However, both the RSS and the BJP have refrained from discussing in public the implications of Bhagwat’s statement, although it has prompted talks and speculations in various quarters, including the Opposition and the media.”
SIASAT
Flagging a spate of killings reported from Patna and other parts of Bihar in recent days, Siasat, in its July 15 editorial, says that during the regime of Lalu Prasad-led RJD, the then Opposition parties BJP and JD(U), now NDA allies, used to accuse it of “jungle raj”. “Nitish Kumar has been the Bihar Chief Minister for 20 years now. The BJP has also been with Nitish for a long period. But, lawlessness still prevails in the state. And, strangely, even now the BJP and the JD(U) point an accusing finger at the Lalu Prasad government for the state of affairs in Bihar,” it says.
The daily writes that the law and order situation in the state has sharply declined, with several people murdered in Patna alone over the last few days. “In the latest incident, a lawyer was shot dead in the state capital. Earlier, a BJP leader and a businessman were gunned down in the city. In Purnea district, five members of a family were burnt alive. Despite the failures of police and administration over these chilling incidents, Nitish Kumar and the BJP have maintained silence,” it says. “The string of killings has deepened a sense of insecurity among people while raising the morale of criminals.”
The editorial states that the Nitish government needs to take responsibility for the law and order situation and take action to improve it. “Instead, the NDA is still indulging in blaming the Lalu regime in a bid to cover up its failings, which is unfortunate. The Nitish government needs to give an account of its two-decade-long reign amid accusations that it has not taken any concrete measures to change the condition of the state.”
The edit points out that the NDA partner and LJP(RV) chief, Chirag Paswan, has expressed concerns over the rising number of murder cases in Bihar. “If such incidents occur in the Opposition-rules states, such as West Bengal, the BJP goes hammer and tongs in attacking them. But in the case of Bihar, the party has shied away from its accountability. It should nudge Nitish to stir into action and focus on upholding law and order.”