Patna: Amid heated debates in the Bihar Assembly’s monsoon session on Monday, Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary defended the state’s ongoing voter list revision, countering opposition protests with a flurry of statistics and sharp political jabs.
The session saw uproar over allegations of irregularities in the State Institutional Reforms (SIR) process and black money, with opposition members staging protests in both houses. Responding to the criticism, Choudhary insisted that the commission overseeing the voter list revision had not excluded any citizens on the basis of caste or economic background, including the poor, backward classes, Dalits, or members of the general category.
Providing updates on the process, the deputy CM claimed that nearly 98% of citizens had so far participated in the form restoration exercise. During the scrutiny, authorities had reportedly identified around 19 lakh deceased voters, over 20 lakh citizens listed as dead, and approximately 8 lakh duplicate entries, where voters were registered in multiple locations.
Choudhary said the voter list clean-up would conclude by July 26, following which a draft list would be released, allowing political parties to raise objections. Accusing the opposition—particularly Congress and its allies—of spreading confusion among the public, he likened their behaviour to being “possessed by Saturn”, a remark that drew sharp reactions across the floor.
He further invoked past statements by political leaders on the issue of undocumented immigrants, pointing out that in 1990 and again in 2005, similar promises were made about identifying and removing Bangladeshi nationals. “When Aadhaar data shows more than 120% card saturation in places like Kishanganj, an investigation is essential,” he asserted.
Choudhary also brushed off criticism from former ally Nitish Kumar, saying the decision to proceed with the list revision was that of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership. “This is our mandate, and we will see it through,” he said.
