Raipur (Chhattisgarh) [India], July 3: Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao on Wednesday hit back at Congress MP Jairam Ramesh’s “Vote-Bandi” comment, calling it “baseless” and “unfounded,” and said it reflected the INDI alliance and RJD’s fear of facing the people of Bihar in the upcoming elections.
“These baseless allegations show that the INDI alliance and RJD are afraid of the people of Bihar and the upcoming elections… They have already accepted defeat. They are searching for excuses. The people of Bihar have not forgotten the jungle raj, corruption, and the misdeeds of one family,” Sao told
Earlier, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh had accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of undermining democracy through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, likening it to the 2016 demonetisation move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Ramesh claimed that just as “notebandi” hurt the economy, the ECI’s “VOTE-Bandi” would destroy India’s democracy.
Ramesh, who is also the Congress General Secretary in charge of Communications, took to X to detail his concerns after an INDIA bloc delegation met the Election Commission to protest the SIR process. He criticized the ECI for limiting the number of representatives allowed in the meeting, saying he had to wait nearly two hours outside.
Ramesh argued that the ECI, as a constitutional body, must not arbitrarily restrict opposition voices. “Over the last six months, the ECI has conducted itself in a manner that undermines the very basis of our democratic system. The Commission cannot routinely refuse requests for hearings from the Opposition,” he posted.
He further warned of the potential impact of the SIR exercise on free and fair elections, adding, “After the PM’s notebandi destroyed our economy, the ECI’s VOTE-Bandi in Bihar and other states, as reflected in the SIR, will destroy our democracy.”
The Election Commission has yet to respond publicly to these allegations.