On the second day of the Winter Session, Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and other Opposition leaders protested against SIR, demanding a debate on electoral reforms. Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi accused the government of undermining voting rights and democracy
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. File pic
On the second day of the Parliament's Winter Session, several Opposition leaders, including Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, staged a protest in the Parliament House complex against SIR and demanded a discussion on electoral reforms.
Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi over the issue and said that Parliament belongs to the people of India, but he constantly "shies away" from discussing important issues related to people's welfare, news agency PTI reported.
In a post on social media platform Facebook, Rahul Gandhi wrote, "What could be a bigger public issue in a democracy than voting rights?"
Stating that the INDIA bloc held a strong protest outside Parliament House against SIR, Rahul Gandhi further said that the Opposition demands a serious discussion on SIR, and it should take place in the Parliament to protect the Constitution and democracy, PTI reported.
He further asserted, "Every citizen's rights are vested in the vote, and the SIR is clearly a weapon to cut the votes of the country's poor and Bahujan community and make elections one-sided."
Along with Rahul Gandhi, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who also participated in the protest, alleged that the Modi government and the Election Commission were together executing 'vote theft' through the SIR.
"This is an organised attempt to strip the voting rights of our millions of Dalit, backward, tribal, and deprived brothers and sisters. Despite all the questions being raised, the Election Commission is not answering any of them, and the government is openly defending the Commission," she wrote in a post on X.
Vadra further said, "This is a conspiracy to destroy democracy and the Constitution and to establish dictatorship. We will not allow this to happen under any circumstances."
On Day 2 of the Parliament Winter Session, Opposition leaders held posters and placards against SIR of the voters' list in nine states and three Union Territories.
They also had a huge banner which read 'Stop SIR – Stop Vote Chori' and raised slogans against the government, PTI reported.
The first day of the winter session on Monday witnessed repeated adjournments of the Lok Sabha and an Opposition walkout from the Rajya Sabha over a demand for a debate on the SIR.
Interacting with the media on Monday at the Parliament House complex before the start of the session, Modi had hit out at the Opposition. PM Modi, while slamming the Opposition, accused them of turning Parliament into a "warm-up arena" for elections or as an outlet to vent out frustration after defeat.
(With inputs from PTI)
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