Bihar Erupts in Protest Over Voter List Revision: Grand Alliance Alleges Rigging, BJP Condemns “Hooliganism”

Bihar Erupts in Protest Over Voter List Revision: Grand Alliance Alleges Rigging, BJP Condemns “Hooliganism”

The BJP of prime minister Narendra Modi faces repeated accusations of electoral fraud, including electronic voting machine (EVM) manipulation, fudged electoral rolls, and the use of threats and bribes to voters, often in alleged collusion with the Election Commission of India, to fraudulently win elections.

By RMN News Service
July 9, 2025

Patna, Bihar – Bihar is currently embroiled in a heated political dispute as the Grand Alliance (Mahagathbandhan), led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, staged a widespread “chakka jam” (roadblock) protest on Wednesday, July 9.

The protest vehemently opposes the Election Commission’s (EC) ongoing special intensive revision of electoral rolls, coming just months ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in Bihar. This has ignited a fierce war of words with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The protest march in Patna, which began at Income Tax Golambar, saw prominent leaders like Rahul Gandhi, Tejashwi Yadav, CPI’s D Raja, and CPM’s Deepankar Bhattacharya leading supporters to the chief electoral officer’s office. Grand Alliance supporters extensively disrupted road and railway traffic, blocking routes and halting trains across various parts of Bihar, including Patna, Araria, Purnea, Katihar, Muzaffarpur, Arwal, Jehanabad, and Darbhanga, with many resorting to burning tyres.

Grand Alliance Alleges Rigging and “Mockery of Democracy”

During the protest, Tejashwi Yadav issued a call for “kranti” (revolution) against what he termed BJP and Nitish Kumar’s “Godi Aayog,” accusing them of attempting to “finish democracy” in Bihar. He asserted, “We won’t allow Dadagiri of BJP and Nitish Kumar’s ‘Godi Aayog’. Bihar is the mother of democracy, and they want to finish democracy here”.

Rahul Gandhi echoed concerns of electoral manipulation, drawing parallels to the Maharashtra Assembly elections. He claimed that after the Lok Sabha elections, where the INDIA bloc had a majority in Maharashtra, the subsequent Assembly election saw the INDIA bloc lose significantly, largely due to the alleged addition of one crore new voters.

Gandhi asserted, “The constituencies where voters were added, BJP won,” further claiming that the Election Commission remained silent when asked for the voter list. He warned that a similar attempt to rig elections is being made in Bihar. The BJP of prime minister Narendra Modi faces repeated accusations of electoral fraud, including electronic voting machine (EVM) manipulation, fudged electoral rolls, and the use of threats and bribes to voters, often in alleged collusion with the Election Commission of India, to fraudulently win elections.

BJP Counter-Attacks, Calls Protest “Hooliganism”

The BJP strongly condemned the “Bihar Bandh,” accusing the INDIA bloc of resorting to “hooliganism” and lacking “real issues”. BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain stated that since the country and Bihar are progressing well, the opposition lacks a proper agenda, and therefore, the Election Commission has become their “soft target”.

Patna Sahib MP Ravishankar Prasad backed the Election Commission’s exercise, emphasizing that only “citizens of India” are entitled to vote. He questioned the opposition’s motives, asking if they desire the “inclusion of infiltrators and others in the voter list,” specifically mentioning Rohingyas.

Prasad suggested that the opposition seeks to “play their politics based on such illicit voters,” calling their approach into question and asking if the protest was an attempt to create “pressure”. He also highlighted that Bihar has 7.9 crore voters, and 4 crore have already submitted enumeration forms, clarifying that those with names on the voter list as of 2003 do not need to resubmit documents.

Election Commission Defends Revision as Standard Procedure

Amidst the protests, the Election Commission (EC) maintained that the ongoing exercise is a “standard procedure to update the voter list before every election, as mandated by law”. The poll body has also launched a drive to “weed out foreign illegal migrants from the electoral rolls” in six states, starting with Bihar.

The EC, through a social media post on X, reiterated Article 326 of the Constitution, which stipulates that elections are based on adult suffrage, meaning every Indian citizen aged 18 or above who is not otherwise disqualified, is entitled to be registered as a voter. The EC emphasized, “The Constitution of India is supreme. All citizens, political parties, and the Election Commission of India follow the Constitution”.

The draft Bihar voter list is set to be published on August 1, 2025. Claims and objections regarding the draft list can be filed from August 1 to September 1. The final voter list will be published on September 30.