16/12/2025
*“No Debate on Infiltrators Will Be Dodged”: BJP JK spokesman Altaf Thakur*
*Defends Electoral Reforms, Slams Congress Walkouts*
*Says Special Intensive Revision is constitutional duty, not ‘vote chori’; accuses Opposition of double standards & fear of truth*
*SIR is about protecting democracy not stealing votes*
BJP Jammu and Kashmir spokesperson Altaf Thakur today launched a scathing attack on the Congress and the INDI alliance, accusing them of repeatedly running away from parliamentary debate whenever uncomfortable truths are raised, particularly on the issue of infiltrators and electoral reforms.
Thakur said the BJP remains ready to discuss any issue on the floor of the House while strictly adhering to parliamentary norms. “Whatever the subject may be, we are always prepared for discussion. But the Congress has a long history of escaping debate,” he said, pointing out that the party never boycotted Parliament when former leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi or Sonia Gandhi were discussed. “Yet, the moment the issue of infiltrators surfaced, they walked out,” he added.
Reiterating the government’s firm stand, Thakur asserted that no amount of boycott politics would dilute the resolve to protect the sanctity of India’s electoral system. “Even if the Opposition boycotts the House 200 times, we will not allow a single infiltrator to get voting rights,” he said.
Referring to the recent debate on Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the BJP leader said the Opposition’s conduct exposed its “guilty conscience.” “When Union Home Minister Amit Shah started exposing the lies of Congress and the INDI alliance on SIR inside Parliament, Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders fled the debate. This itself is proof that they had no answers,” Thakur remarked.
He accused the Opposition of spreading “one-sided falsehoods” for nearly four months to mislead people about SIR and the voter list revision process. “It is good that the House finally discussed electoral reforms and that the nation saw through the lies of Congress and the INDI alliance,” he said.
Highlighting the constitutional framework, Thakur underlined that the Election Commission of India is an autonomous body entrusted with conducting free and fair elections. Citing Part XV of the Constitution, he said Article 324 gives the Election Commission full control over elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Assemblies, and the offices of the President and Vice President.
He further explained that Article 325 clearly states that no eligible voter shall be excluded from the electoral roll, while Article 326 defines the right to vote, with Indian citizenship as its foremost condition. “A voter must be an Indian citizen, not a foreigner. The second condition is age—above 18 years—and the third relates to the validity of records. This is precisely where SIR becomes important,” he said.
Thakur also referred to Article 327, which empowers Parliament, based on the Election Commission’s recommendations, to legislate on matters related to electoral rolls, delimitation and the conduct of elections. “The same laws were in force even when Congress governments were elected in states like Haryana. This is neither a ‘fake House’ nor are there ‘fake voters’ being created,” he asserted.
Dismissing specific allegations raised by the Opposition, Thakur cited multiple examples from Bihar where claims were later proven false. He referred to Minta Devi, whose age was alleged to be 124 years, but who later clarified that it was a clerical error made during an online application. Similarly, allegations regarding Subodh Kumar of Nawada and Ranju Devi of Rohtas were also debunked after the individuals themselves admitted to errors or misinformation prompted by Congress workers.
“Such false claims were made not just in Bihar but also in Karnataka and Maharashtra. In many cases, even the media exposed the lies,” Thakur said.
Questioning the Opposition’s selective outrage, he asked, “How is it that when the BJP loses an election, the voter list suddenly becomes ‘perfect’? Opposition leaders happily take oath then. But when they lose badly, as in Bihar, the same voter list becomes flawed.”
Calling this approach dangerous for democracy, Thakur said, “Double standards will not work. When they win, the Election Commission is ‘great’; when they lose, it becomes ‘inefficient’. This hypocrisy will not be allowed.”
He further alleged that several Opposition leaders themselves figure in cases of duplicate or bogus voter IDs. “Prashant Kishor is a voter in two places. Pawan Khera has two voter IDs. Tejashwi Yadav himself has a bogus voter ID. Congress leader T. Siddique from Kerala, AAP’s Sanjay Singh, and UBT Shiv Sena’s Kishori Pednekar have also faced similar issues,” Thakur claimed.
Concluding, the BJP spokesperson said SIR is aimed precisely at cleaning up such discrepancies to ensure transparency and credibility in elections. “Yet Congress and the INDI alliance are branding it as ‘vote chori’. The truth is simple: SIR is about protecting democracy, not stealing votes,” he said.
