Why were they allowed in Lok Sabha polls? Owaisi slams Bihar voter list clean-up

On Monday, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi was not only concerned about the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that is currently going on in Bihar before the Assembly polls, but also doubted the timing and methodology employed by the Election Commission of India to complete this initiative.

After visiting the Election Commission's office, while speaking to reporters, Owaisi said, "Even if 15–20% of people are missed from the list, they will also lose their citizenship. We are not against the Special Intensive Revision, but time must be given. If there were illegal migrants, then why were they allowed to vote in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections? How did they vote then?” he asked. He also accused the BJP and RSS of spreading misinformation about ‘infiltrators’ from Bangladesh. “After the 1971 war, India allowed them to stay. How did they suddenly become infiltrators today?".

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Owaisi cautioned against the removal of names in the voter list as it is not only about being deprived of the right to vote but also the welfare rights of people and their livelihood. "If someone's name is struck off, it's not just a missed vote — it is an issue of survival for the poor who have no documents. Many migrant workers returned to Bihar but now have no papers to prove their identity," he said.

He even claimed that the move taken to launch the clean-up drive was hasty. "We have told the Commission that this decision was taken in haste. Booth Level Officers (BLOs) have not even been given proper handbooks to carry out the work," he added.

The AIMIM leader implied that the resort to the law is also possible although he did not make a definite promise. "Whether we go to court or not, time will tell," he said, throwing in that they will also discuss with the other opposition parties on the way forward after that.

Owaisi has also lashed out at Union Minister of Minor Diversities of India, Kiren Rijiju over his remarks that more concessions, privileges of the government and safeguards are available to minorities in India than to the majority community.

Taking to X, Owaisi wrote, "You are a Minister of the Indian Republic, not a monarch. @KirenRijiju You hold a constitutional post, not a throne. Minority rights are fundamental rights, not charity."

"Is it a “benefit” to be called Pakistani, Bangladeshi, jihadi, or Rohingya every single day? Is it “protection” to be lynched? Is it protection that Indian citizens were kidnapped and pushed into Bangladesh?" Owaisi questioned.

You are a Minister of the Indian Republic, not a monarch. @KirenRijiju You hold a constitutional post, not a throne. Minority rights are fundamental rights, not charity.

Is it a “benefit” to be called Pakistani, Bangladeshi, jihadi, or Rohingya every single day? Is it… https://t.co/G1dgmvj6Gl

— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) July 7, 2025

Owaisi criticized the central government too, because of stopping various scholarships awarded to Muslim students, which as according to him, used to benefit them earlier.

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"You discontinued the Maulana Azad National Fellowship. You defunded the pre-matric scholarship. You limited the post-matric and merit-cum-means scholarships. All because they benefited Muslim students," he said.

The Bihar state president of AIMIM and MLA Akhtarul Iman had the same apprehensions. He even implored ECI to push the deadline or freeze the process as there is a wide spread of non documentation among the poor, migrant labourers and among those people who suffer seasonal floods.

"In Bihar, only 2 per cent of people have passports, and just 14 per cent are graduates. Most poor people don't have documents. Many have lost their papers during floods. There is fear that these people will lose their right to vote," Iman said.

The Election Commission ordered a Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls in the state, a large scale excersise since 2003, on June 24. According to the ECI, the overhaul will be oriented at taking out ineligible names such as those of late voters and suspected illegal immigrants as well as whittling down the list of the eligibility of voters so that only real citizens make it to the rolls. The Commission had mentioned attributes such as fast rate of urbanisation, high migration rate and under-reporting in case of death in supporting the push.

Owaisi, however, remains firm and said, "Our only issue is how the Election Commission can carry out such a huge exercise in such a short time. People will face the consequences".

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