New Delhi [India], July 16 : Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday criticised the decision of the Election Commission to determine citizenship of Indian nationals, accusing them of doing "NRC through back door" over the poll-body's decision to Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls ahead of the Bihar Assembly election and stated that the constitutional rights of voters were being snatched.
He further questioned why the exercise was being conducted four to five months before the Bihar assembly polls, further stating that there was an atmosphere of fear in Bihar.
"The constitutional rights of the voters are being snatched...The matter is pending before the Supreme Court...It is not the responsibility of the Election Commission to prove citizenship. Why is this exercise being conducted four to five months before the assembly polls?... There is an atmosphere of fear in Bihar..." Ramesh told ANI.
Earlier on July 15, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi has questioned the authority of the Election Commission of India to determine citizenship of Indian nationals, accusing them of doing "NRC through back door" over the poll-body's decision to Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls ahead of the Bihar Assembly election.
Speaking with ANI, Owaisi said. "Who gave the ECI the power to determine whether someone is a citizen or not? Our party was the first to say that SIR is NRC through the back door. "Owaisi also questioned the result of the last SIR conducted in Bihar in 2003"We demand the number of those BLOs. We will ask our party members to meet those BLOs and ask them where the people from Nepal, Myanmar and Bangladesh are that they are talking about... The SIR was conducted in 2003. How many foreign nationals were revealed at that time?"
Owaisi continued his verbal tirade not just on the ruling alliance and ECI but also on the INDIA bloc by ruling out the possibility of joining the alliance and accusing it of suppressing the new leaders.
"One-sided love is not going to happen. The people of Bihar should understand that the accusations that were made against us were based on lies and were made because they do not want a leader of the poor and oppressed people to become their political leadership," Owaisi said while speaking to ANI.
"They just want you to remain their slaves, to walk behind them with your head bowed," Owaisi added.