"Has Rahul Gandhi Forgotten...": Minister's Jab Over Bihar Roll Revision

Union minister Pralhad Joshi hit back at the Congress today over the electoral roll revision in Bihar, saying the process of SIR (Special Intensive Revision) was started at the behest of Rahul Gandhi, who had written a letter about the discrepancies in the voter list.

In an exclusive interview with NDTV, Mr Joshi said, SIR has "happened many times before this and its process is the same as before". 
"If there is any difference in the process at all, it is that of technology," he added.

"The Election Commission is doing it and those who are asking why the Election Commission is doing it -- has Rahul Gandhi forgotten that he himself wrote a letter saying there are mistakes in the voter list and they should be corrected? And now, when the Election Commission is correcting it, he is saying our voters will be stolen," Mr Joshi said. 

"If work is done on his letter there is a problem. If it is not done, then there is a problem... these are the people who will oppose whatever you do," he added. 

With six days to go for the final list, more than 41 lakh voters are risk of exclusion -- up from 35.6 lakh earlier this week - and the opposition parties in Bihar have been on the warpath over this, saying their supporters are being selectively left out.

On Saturday, Rashtriya Janata Dal's Tejashwi Yadav - an ally of the Congress -- wrote to leaders of 35 major parties across the country seeking their support.

"The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar is a spectacle and a tragedy, disenfranchising large numbers of voters and shaking the very foundation of democracy... This is a clear indication of how an 'independent institution' like the Election Commission is bent on eroding public confidence in the integrity of our electoral process," he wrote.

The matter is expected to have ripples in the monsoon session of parliament which begins tomorrow.