Bengaluru: The BJP cited Karnataka minister Satish Jarkiholi's reported defence of the SIR in his state and said that even Congress leaders recognise the need for a clean voter roll, exposing Rahul Gandhi’s "anti-democratic politics".
In a post on X, the BJP said, "Congress leaders are increasingly contradicting Rahul Gandhi’s anti-SIR stand. Karnataka Cabinet Minister Satish Jarkiholi defended Karnataka’s SIR process, justifying deletions of nearly one crore names, citing duplicate, deceased and relocated voters.
"The message is clear: even Congress leaders recognise the need for a clean voter roll, exposing Rahul Gandhi’s anti-democratic politics."
"Congress is planning a big protest rally in Delhi on November 1st, claiming the voter list revision is rigged. Meanwhile, their own Karnataka Minister Satish Jarkiholi just told reporters: 'No issue with SIR in Karnataka. Only names of people who died, moved away, or had duplicate entries were deleted," Patra said in a post on X.
The Congress calls it "routine work" if it happens in a state ruled by the party, but it is "suddenly a scam" elsewhere. "You cannot make this up. Before protesting in Delhi, maybe talk to your own ministers first."
BJP national spokesperson C R Kesavan also alleged that Jarkiholi's remarks exposed what he called Rahul Gandhi's "fake propaganda" against the SIR process.
"Karnataka Congress Minister Satish Jarkiholi publicly praising the SIR process for exposing bogus voters has completely busted and debunked Rahul Gandhi's fake propaganda about SIR," Kesavan said.
"The dishonest Rahul Gandhi's lies and his purported March on November 1 now lie in shambles after his fakery on SIR has been exposed by his own Congress colleagues," he said.
He further said the Karnataka minister has very clearly defended the SIR process, saying it has helped remove dead and deleted voters, and this is a slap in the face of Gandhi's fraudulent misinformation campaign on constitutional institutions.
"Rahul Gandhi's undemocratic and anarchic attempts to salvage his failed political career by trying to unleash chaos and derail Indian democracy will fail miserably. Our people will reject the anarchic agenda of Rahul Gandhi to disrupt Indian democracy," he added.
Amid Congress' stiff opposition to SIR undertaken by the Election Commission, Jarkiholi has made a statement seen as an endorsement of the exercise carried out in the state.
When asked about Congress' protests against SIR, Jarkiholi told reporters on Wednesday: "What we are talking about is not (SIR that was done) in Karnataka, but elsewhere like West Bengal, Maharashtra and Bihar."
"The SIR in Karnataka was done in the right manner because of our (Congress) protests and training. We argue that it should happen in the same manner in other states," he said.
When questioned about the removal of nearly one crore voters from the electoral rolls in the state, the minister said, "Yes, these are voters who shifted, died or were duplicates."
After the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, the Election Commission on Tuesday published the final electoral rolls, listing 4.55 crore electors in the state, down from 5.54 crore before the revision, marking a decline of 99.32 lakh voters.
