Bihar: Lalu Prasad Yadav’s daughter Rohini Acharya slams NDA and ECI over voter deletion 

Patna, Aug 25 (IANS) RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s daughter Rohini Acharya on Monday launched a sharp attack on the NDA government and the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists in Bihar.

Speaking to reporters in Patna, Acharya alleged that nearly 65 lakh names of voters have been deleted from the rolls across the state, most of whom, she claimed, are supporters of the Grand Alliance (Mahagathbandhan).

“Those people are being declared dead where the lotus is not visible. This is what we are fighting against. We are raising our voices for the rights given to us by Baba Saheb B.R. Ambedkar and Lalu Prasad Yadav through the Constitution. We will also join the people of Saran in this fight,” Acharya said.

The issue comes in the backdrop of the ongoing Voter Adhikar Yatra, being led jointly by the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.

During the Yatra in Bihar on Sunday, Tejashwi Yadav declared that he would work to make LoP Rahul Gandhi the next Prime Minister. However, when asked about the Chief Ministerial candidate in Bihar, LoP Rahul Gandhi remained silent.

Responding to this, Rohini Acharya said, “The people of Bihar want Tejashwi to become the Chief Minister. As for the rest, discussions will take place in the meeting. We will disclose the decision there, not to the media now.”

The opposition’s ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ has intensified political tempers in Bihar, with the Grand Alliance accusing the NDA and the Election Commission of disenfranchising lakhs of voters to gain political advantage ahead of the Assembly elections.

The NDA, on the other hand, has dismissed these allegations as baseless and politically motivated.

Amid growing speculation over Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s son Nishant Kumar possibly entering active politics, Rohini Acharya welcomed the idea of youth participation in governance.

“The youth should come into politics. Those who have respect for the poor in their hearts should definitely come into politics,” she said.

Her remarks come after posters featuring Nitish Kumar and Nishant Kumar were put up across Patna, with JD(U) workers urging Nishant to take over his father’s political legacy.

Responding to questions on her brother Tej Pratap Yadav preparing to contest from Mahua constituency, Rohini Acharya said: “Everyone has the right to contest elections, anyone can contest elections.”