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3 BJP Allies Press Election Commission to Break Silence on SIR

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LJP(RV), RLM and TDP urge the Election Commission to clarify the SIR row and rebuild public trust, splitting with the BJP's stance.

Three partners in the National Democratic Alliance broke from the government's line on Friday and called on the Election Commission to publicly explain its handling of the electoral process and the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls. Chirag Paswan's LJP(RV), Upendra Kushwaha's RLM and Chandrababu Naidu's Telugu Desam Party each said the poll body needed to clear up the doubts spreading among voters.

Paswan, who leads the LJP(RV) and serves as Union food processing industries minister, spoke to reporters in Patna. He said that as part of the government he did not intend to "defend what is a constitutional body," but he wanted the Commission to speak to public concerns directly. "If questions are being raised about its conduct, it is the responsibility of EC, especially the chief election commissioner (Gyanesh Kumar), to present its side firmly," he said.

Paswan drew a line between the opposition's attacks and the worries of ordinary voters. He said he had nothing to do with the opposition's statements, arguing that levelling allegations and politicising the matter was their role, while the common people needed to be taken into confidence.

"If people start losing trust in the electoral system, that will not augur well for democracy and, therefore, I think the EC must come out with its clarification more forcefully," he said. "It need not respond to what Rahul Gandhi and his associates are saying. But it must dispel misgivings in the minds of the people."

Kushwaha, the RLM president, made the same demand in a social media post. "There is considerable confusion among the public regarding the controversy surrounding SIR," he wrote. "This issue needs to be addressed. The EC should immediately clarify the situation to dispel this confusion."

TDP wants greater transparency

Naidu's Telugu Desam Party added its voice, calling for a clarification against the backdrop of reports of internal differences at the Commission and protests by opposition parties. The party's parliamentary leader, Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu, said the revision had been a success in Andhra Pradesh, where the TDP is in office, but still pressed for openness.

"The EC is a constitutional institution entrusted with a crucial responsibility in our democracy," Devarayalu said. "Therefore, whenever questions are raised by anyone, providing appropriate clarification and maintaining transparency will only help strengthen public confidence in the institution." He said the SIR in Andhra Pradesh had been carried out transparently, with voters given enough opportunity and time to raise concerns.

Reports of dissent inside the Commission

The three allies spoke out after reports in The Indian Express that two senior election officials had objected several times to decisions taken without their knowledge or agreement. Those reports have fuelled opposition demands that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar be removed from office and that the SIR process be stopped.

The Election Commission addressed the matter on Wednesday, saying that differing views among its members were normal and that its final decisions had been reached unanimously.

The interventions expose a gap between the NDA's smaller partners and the BJP. Bihar BJP spokesperson Manoj Sharma played down the remarks, saying of Paswan and Kushwaha, "They head their own parties and hold the right to talk about this issue." Another BJP functionary, who did not want to be named, said the party's alliance with the LJP(RV) and the RLM was "limited only to Bihar and was not on the all-India level."

Election Commission, SIR electoral rolls, Chirag Paswan, LJP RV, Chandrababu Naidu TDP, Gyanesh Kumar, Upendra Kushwaha RLM, NDA allies

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