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Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioner Dr. Vivek Joshi held an interaction with a delegation from All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen Party led by its National President Asaduddin Owaisi at Nirvachan Sadan in the national capital on Monday.
The poll body said that it received suggestions from the Owaisi-led delegation in the meeting, which was held at Nirvachan Sadan. "Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioner Dr. Vivek Joshi had an interaction with a delegation from All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen Party led by its National President Shri Asaduddin Owaisi and received their suggestions at Nirvachan Sadan today," the Election Commission of India wrote in a post on X. Earlier today, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi warned that lakhs of people in Bihar could lose their citizenship and livelihoods if the Election Commission proceeds with its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls without adequate time and safeguards. Calling the process rushed and impractical, Owaisi said even a 15-20 per cent error rate could have devastating consequences for marginalised communities ahead of the state elections. Speaking after visiting the ECI office in Delhi, Owaisi said, "Even if 15-20 per cent of people are missed from the list, they will also lose their citizenship. We are not against Special Intensive Revision (SIR), but time must be given." He stressed that the exercise, if conducted hastily, would not just deprive people of their voting rights but also threaten their right to livelihood. Amid the criticism, the Election Commission on Sunday said the SIR process was progressing smoothly with active cooperation from electors on the ground. It said the initial phase of distributing Enumeration Forms was nearly complete, with forms made available to all electors who could be reached. Earlier, the Supreme Court agreed to hear on July 10 a batch of petitions challenging the ECI's decision to conduct the SIR in Bihar. A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi allowed senior advocates Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Gopal Sankaranarayanan and Shadan Farasat to serve advance copies of the petitions to the Election Commission. Bihar elections are expected to be held later this year in October or November; however, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has not announced an official date. (ANI)
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