Kharge alleged that votes of the Opposition are being openly cut in the name of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar electoral rolls, even as those alive are being declared dead
NEW DELHI — Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday alleged that the ruling BJP is ready to go to any extent of immorality to remain in power and reiterated that several “irregularities” in elections are emerging across the country.
In his Independence Day speech after unfurling the national flag at the Indira Bhawan Congress headquarters, he alleged that votes of the opposition are being openly cut in the name of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar electoral rolls, even as those alive are being declared dead, reported PTI.
The Congress chief said the BJP not having any objection to votes of 65 lakh people being cut shows who benefitted from the SIR exercise.
“This is not a fight to win elections but to save India’s democracy and protect the Constitution,” Kharge said, referring to the Congress’ opposition to the revision of Bihar electoral rolls.
“Now the ruling party is ready to go to any extent of immorality to remain in power. Large-scale irregularities are coming to light in elections,” he alleged.
“In the name of Special Intensive Revision, votes of the opposition are being openly cut. Those who are alive have been declared dead. The impartiality of the Election Commission can be understood from the fact that it is not ready to tell whose votes are being cut and on what basis,” he said.
“We are grateful to the Supreme Court, which listened to the voice of the people and asked the Election Commission to make the voter list public. The most surprising thing is that the ruling party has no objection to the votes of 65 lakh people being cut. This clearly shows who benefitted from this exercise,” he said.
The Congress chief also claimed that central investigation agencies like ED and CBI, and the Income Tax department have been used “so openly for political purposes against the opponents (opposition parties) that the Supreme Court of the country had to show them the mirror”.
Kharge claimed that India has lost the special place it earned due to its ‘non-alignment policy’. “Where once we were the voice of all the developing countries, today we have no one of our own, neither in the neighbourhood nor far away,” he said.
“The dream that the heroes of independence saw for this country is going away from us today,” he said.
Noting that the basis of Indian democracy is fair elections, the Congress chief said B R Ambedkar said in the Constituent Assembly on June 15, 1949, that the “franchise is one of the most fundamental things in a democracy. No person who is entitled to be brought into the electoral rolls… should be excluded merely as a result of prejudice…” He said the entire world knows about the Congress’ role in the struggle for independence, which was achieved on August 15, 1947. “The story of the freedom struggle is the story of our party,” he said.
“On this occasion, I bow to all the great personalities who contributed and made sacrifices during the freedom movement.
“After two-and-a-half years of tireless hard work following independence, we gave India our Constitution, which perhaps cannot be compared with any other constitutional document in the world. In the long journey of eight decades after independence, Congress governments and our visionary leaders laid the foundation of a strong India,” he said.
“Keeping the Constitution supreme, the people were given an equal position in the creation of democracy. Rich and poor, king and subjects, men and women, all were given equal rights – ‘One Person, One Vote, One Value’,” he said.
