Key Takeaways
- Congress MP Manickam Tagore moves adjournment motion in Lok Sabha to discuss SIR in Bihar, alleging voter purging and disenfranchisement.
- The Modi government’s voter purging plan allegedly involves striking lakhs of poor voters from the electoral rolls in Bihar, particularly from Dalit and backward communities.
- The right to vote is the cornerstone of Indian democracy, and any attempt to curtail this right amounts to a direct attack on the Constitution.
Congress MP Manickam Tagore submitted an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha, demanding an urgent discussion on the SIR mechanism in Bihar. He described it as a “blatant and unconstitutional attempt” to deny voting rights to the poor, backward, Dalit, and marginalised communities.
In his notice under Rule 56 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha, Tagore accused the Modi government of misusing the Election Commission to disenfranchise vulnerable sections of society—a move he said amounts to a violation of the fundamental right to vote enshrined in the Constitution and envisioned by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
“That this House do adjourn to discuss the dangerous and unconstitutional moves by the Modi Government to use the Election Commission as a tool to systematically disenfranchise the poor, backward, Dalit, and marginalized communities in Bihar by means of the SIR (Special Investigation Report) mechanism, thereby violating the fundamental right to vote granted by the Constitution, as envisioned by Babasaheb Dr. B.R. Ambedkar,” his letter to the Speaker stated.
The Congress leader likened the alleged voter purging to “colonial practices,” where suffrage was limited to the elite. “This calculated disenfranchisement is reminiscent of a time when only the rich and property-owning classes could vote, while the masses were excluded,” he said.
He further alleged that the ruling dispensation was exhibiting a “Manuwadi mindset” aimed at reversing the gains of social justice and universal adult franchise.
“Under the guise of verifying voter identity and eligibility, official machinery is being misused to strike lakhs of poor voters—particularly from Dalit and backward communities—off the electoral rolls in Bihar. This is not an isolated incident, but part of a larger, disturbing pattern to manipulate the electoral process in favour of the ruling party by excluding sections of society that do not support them politically,” Tagore wrote.
He stressed that the right to vote is the cornerstone of Indian democracy, and any attempt to curtail this right amounts to a direct attack on the Constitution.
