‘Stop conducting, start contesting elections’: Kanhaiya Kumar's jibe at poll body

Kanhaiya Kumar questioned the motive behind the Special Intensive Revision, saying the EC had maintained that there are no issues in the electoral rolls.

Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar on Sunday hit out at the Election Commission over the alleged voter list discrepancies made by Rahul Gandhi, saying the poll body should "stop conducting" and "start contesting" elections.

All India Congress Committee Incharge, NSUI, Kanhaiya Kumar addresses a press conference after the meeting of AICC General Secretaries, In-charges, and Frontal Heads, in New Delhi on Tuesday. (AICC/ANI Photo) (AICC)

"When opposition leader Rahul Gandhi is saying that there are discrepancies and you should investigate... then they said that SIR has been done to prevent discrepancies... Now, today, the Election Commission is suddenly holding a press conference. The Election Commission should stop conducting and start contesting elections themselves," Kumar told ANI.

Kanhaiya also questioned the motive behind the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, saying the EC had earlier said that there is no issue in the electoral rolls.

"When your intentions are not good, no matter how much you try to hide the truth, it will come out. The Election Commission had been saying for many months that there is no issue in the electoral rolls, and when the LoP, Rahul Gandhi, started exposing them, the Election Commission started the SIR exercise. We want the electoral rolls to be sanitised," he said.

The remark from the Congress leader comes as the Election Commission on Sunday held a press conference in New Delhi amid the "vote choti" allegations made by some opposition parties.

During the conference, Chief Election Commissioner Gynaesh Kumar said the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is aimed at removing all shortcomings in voters lists and it is a matter of grave concern that some parties are spreading misinformation about it.

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi, while addressing a rally in Bihar's Sasaram, vowed to expose any theft of votes, whether in Maharashtra, Bihar, or elsewhere in the future.

"The entire country knows what the Election Commission is doing. Earlier, the country did not know how votes were being stolen. But we made it clear in the press conference how votes are being stolen. Whenever the theft is happening, whether in Bihar, Maharashtra, Assam, Bengal, we will catch the theft and work to show the people," Gandhi said.

The Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha called the Bihar's SIR a "conspiracy" by the Election Commission.

"I am telling you from this stage that Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha elections are being stolen in the entire country. Their latest conspiracy is to conduct SIR in Bihar and steal the Bihar elections as well by cutting the new votes and adding fake ones. All of us have come to this stage to tell you that we will not let them steal this election," Rahul Gadhi said.