NEW DELHI: Union health minister JP Nadda on Wednesday accused the Congress of opposing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists to protect outsiders whose support, he alleged, had helped the party remain in power for a long time.“BJP’s Amit Shah favours ‘detect, delete and deport’. And what does Congress say? What does INDIA bloc say? They say ‘normalise, recognise and formalise’,” Nadda said, addressing the ‘Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao’ padyatra in Bhopal.The senior BJP leader said the Congress was attempting to undermine constitutional institutions, including the Election Commission, because it was unable to secure public support, PTI reported.Additionally, he alleged that the opposition wanted outsiders to be issued Aadhaar and ration cards and settled in the country so they could become voters.“These people who have come from outside, normalise them. Make Aadhaar cards for them, make ration cards for them, settle them down,” Nadda jibed at Congress.“Tell me, should we detect them or not? Should we deport them or not?” Nadda asked the public, urging it to “delete” the Congress and the INDIA bloc.
Nadda accuses Congress of undermining EC credibility
The BJP leader accused the Congress of attempting to weaken the Election Commission, alleging that the party blamed the poll body whenever it lost elections.“Realising that the electorate is unlikely to grant them any space in the political landscape for the next 20 to 30 years, they have resorted to blaming the Election Commission,” he said.He also accused the Congress of adopting different positions depending on election results, claiming that the party praised Rahul Gandhi when it won in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh but questioned the Election Commission when it lost.He said Booth Level Officers (BLOs) visiting households to facilitate voter registration reflected the strength of India’s electoral system.“In many parts of the world, voters must go to an election office to register their names, whereas in India, a Booth Level Officer (BLO) goes door-to-door to facilitate voter registration, and this is the strength of the Election Commission,” Nadda said.
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Nadda alleged that the Congress had dismissed elected governments 90 times while in power and questioned its claims of being committed to protecting democracy.Recalling the Emergency imposed in 1975, he claimed that he had been arrested twice by the police while he was a student.Nadda further accused the Congress and the INDIA bloc of attempting to destabilise the country and undermine the credibility of its institutions.