New Delhi. During the winter session of Parliament, Samajwadi Party chief and MP Akhilesh Yadav, while discussing electoral reforms in the Lok Sabha, said that BJP members were also speaking about the Uttar Pradesh elections. “I would like to say that fair proceedings were not seen anywhere in the by-elections. In the Rampur by-election, the Chief Minister and the BJP leadership had decided that the BJP would win. Moreover, on voting day, everyone saw how the police and administration were focused on ensuring that no voter left their homes. For the first time, the BJP won the Lok Sabha elections there. Our party reported every single incident to the Election Commission, but despite this, the Election Commission took no action against anyone. When we realized that the Election Commission is biased, we decided to fight. Elections are won and lost, but the Election Commission’s job is to remain impartial. There was a time when we fought the Congress, and today we are fighting you. There was a time when we were a party of five MPs, and today we are the largest party in Uttar Pradesh.”
Akhilesh Yadav said that this process of reform should begin with the Election Commission itself. Vote theft like the one in Chandigarh, preventing people from voting at gunpoint, refusing to meet even if they have an affidavit receipt, and a single voter casting multiple votes—all of these should be stopped. Regarding the unification of voter lists with the “One Nation, One Election” mandate, I would say that cards like Aadhaar are not being accepted in Uttar Pradesh. This is not SIR; it’s a covert NRC exercise. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is claiming that they are building detention centers. Faith in democracy must be restored, and elections should be conducted by ballot instead of EVMs.
SP MP Akhilesh Yadav supported the Congress’s demand for changes to the CEC appointment process and said that voting should be conducted by ballot. Those who are citing technology today should consider the technical aspects of India and Japan. When advanced countries like Japan and Germany can conduct voting by ballot, why can’t we? Regarding SIR, Akhilesh said that 10 people have lost their lives in Uttar Pradesh. He said that he has a list of nine BLOs. Listing some of these nine, Akhilesh said, “In Moradabad, BLO Sarvesh Singh hanged himself. In Bijnor, BLP Shobha Rani suffered a heart attack. In Deoria, BLO accountant Ashish’s health deteriorated while on duty. He died shortly thereafter. In Fatehpur, accountant Sudhir Kumar hanged himself a day before his wedding.”
