BJP Stealing Seats, Not Just Votes, Alleges Minister
The minister expressed concern that errors in voter lists could influence election outcomes
Nalgonda: Roads and buildings minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy on Saturday called upon Congress workers to act “like warriors” to protect voting rights, alleging a threat through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
Addressing an awareness programme on SIR at MNR Gardens in Nalgonda, he said the right to vote was fundamental in a democracy and safeguarding constitutional rights was the responsibility of political parties and individuals. He said a nationwide struggle was under way to protect the “right to vote” and urged Booth Level Agents of the Congress to remain vigilant during the SIR process.
Alleging irregularities, he said the BJP was “stealing not votes, but seats as well,” and criticised the rejection of the nomination of Congress in-charge for Telangana and Rajya Sabha candidate Meenakshi Natarajan.
The minister expressed concern that errors in voter lists could influence election outcomes. Even minor discrepancies in voter details could lead to deletion of names during the SIR process, he said, asking party workers to treat the revision exercise with utmost seriousness and ensure that eligible voters were not removed.
Citing figures from other states, he said 2.89 crore voters in Uttar Pradesh, 91 lakh in West Bengal, 74 lakh in Tamil Nadu, 68 lakh in Gujarat and 34 lakh in Madhya Pradesh were deleted during similar exercises.
He also referred to alleged deletions in constituencies contested by M.K. Stalin and Mamata Banerjee, linking them to electoral outcomes.
Pargi MLA and TPCC Training Committee (SIR) chairman Dr T. Rammohan Reddy explained the SIR process to Booth Level Agents and asked them to ensure that names of Congress supporters were not deleted from electoral rolls.
MLC Kethavath Shanker Naik also attended the programme.
