Jharkhand Congress leader and Health Minister Irfan Ansari made news last Sunday after a video went viral showing him as telling people to “lock up and tie” Booth-level Officers (BLOs) if they visit their homes to seek information related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Ansari is known for “speaking his mind” and often referred to as a “loudmouth” within Congress circles.
In the video, Ansari is heard purportedly telling a gathering, “The BJP is trying to remove your names from the voter lists… If BLOs come to your houses, lock them up and tie them. I will come and set them free.”
He said that the recent SIR in Bihar led to the deletion of 65 lakh voters, which he alleged affected the Mahagathbandhan’s prospects in 80 of the 243 seats in the recent Assembly elections there.
Speaking to The Indian Express Tuesday, Ansari claimed his remarks were “misreported and misinterpreted”. “I was only referring to fake BLOs who are extorting money from residents in interior areas. I had no intention of inciting people against genuine election staff,” he said.
Apart from the political backlash, Ansari’s remarks prompted Jharkhand Chief Electoral Officer K Ravi Kumar (CEO) to seek a report from the Jamtara Deputy Commissioner, who was present at the function held at Jamtara where the minister made the controversial remark.
“Further action will be decided after the report is submitted. The minister is claiming that there are fake BLOs but we have not received any complaint in this regard,” he added.
A three-term MLA from Jamtara, Ansari is the son of senior Congress leader and former Godda MP Furqan Ansari. He made his electoral debut in the 2014 state Assembly elections and has since retained the Jamtara seat. Last year, after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-Congress combine won the Assembly polls, he was inducted into the Hemant Soren Cabinet.
Seen as an influential figure in neighbouring Bihar as well, Ansari was appointed by the Congress as a party observer for the Assembly polls there.
He was also included in the list of the Congress’s star campaigners in the neighbouring state. As an observer, he was given charge of around 23 seats, mainly in regions bordering Jharkhand.
Ansari is no stranger to controversy. In 2022, he was arrested by the West Bengal Police along with two other Congress MLAs, Rajesh Kachhap and Naman Bixal Kongari, after Rs 49 lakh cash was allegedly recovered from their vehicle. As allegations of “horse-trading” surfaced and the BJP accused them of carrying “illicit funds”, the Congress suspended the three MLAs. They were booked on charges of criminal conspiracy and corruption. Currently out on bail, the case has been pending in the Calcutta High Court. The Congress revoked his suspension in July 2023.
Earlier this year, Ansari came under fire after his son posted a video of himself inspecting hospitals—an act many of Ansari’s rivals described as “inappropriate and overruling authority”.
During the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj earlier this year, Ansari found himself at odds with the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government. He had then claimed that he would “put an end to communal hatred” by visiting the Kumbh and taking the holy dip.
Ansari also landed in trouble after he compared CM Hemant Soren and his wife Kalpana Soren with Ram and Sita while speaking in the Assembly. Reacting to Hemant’s arrest in January last year, he claimed “300 FIRs” were filed against him for his remarks.
Ansari’s tenure as a minister has also been marked by various rows. He has frequently clashed with several stakeholders over the implementation of the Centre’s Ayushmaan Bharat scheme. More recently, he faced criticism after issuing a notice prohibiting local media and YouTubers from reporting on the Ranchi Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS).
He has also courted controversy over his push for the construction of RIMS-2, which villagers of the tribal-dominated Nagri have opposed on the ground that it was being undertaken without the community’s consent.
BJP stance
The principal Opposition BJP has seized upon Ansari’s comment on BLOs, with Leader of the Opposition Babulal Marandi terming them “unconstitutional” and demanding his sacking. “When a minister’s words endanger the safety of election officials, he neither has the moral or constitutional right to hold his position,” Marandi said.
While the EC has rolled out the second phase of its SIR exercise in nine states and three Union Territories since November 4, Jharkhand is not a part of them.