How Bihar Bandh turned opposition's first major protest against ECI

After repeated claims of the Congress that the ruling dispensation is manipulating voting numbers in elections with the help of Election Commission of India to achieve electoral victories. "Bihar Bandh" was the first on-ground protest of Congress (jointly conducted with RJD) to agitate against the poll panel.

This is the first time after consecutive defeats of Congress in assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Maharashtra, the party has been part of street demonstration against the ECI which the Congress thinks is helping the saffron camp time and again offering the BJP leverage in every election.

In a gathering in Bihar, largely comprising of students and young supporters, the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Rahul Gandhi alleged that the Election Commission had lost its independence. The Gandhi scion charged, “The Election Commissioner used to be above political parties, but today they’re being nominated by the BJP and RSS."

Addressing protesters while holding a copy of the Constitution in hand from atop a vehicle, the Gandhi said, “SIR is not only an attempt to steal your vote but also of your future. But the youths of Bihar will not let it happen as the entire Opposition stands with you.”

Bihar bandh was called by opposition parties against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision, which aspires to exclude the ineligible voters from the voter list and make a revised list of eligible voters. The process entails door-to-door surveys to verify voter details by Booth Level Officers and the submission of one of 11 documents for verification, like identity cards and birth certificates. Aadhaar card is not among the list.

BJP and state’s NDA leaders, however, countered by accusing the opposition of playing politics. And the ECI, for its part, has maintained that the SIR was a routine and lawful exercise intended to update voter rolls before the upcoming elections.

India