• Source:JND
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Bihar SIR News: RJD leader and Bihar LoP Tejashwi Yadav on Saturday claimed that his name was not there in the draft Bihar voter list relelased by the Election Commission of India on Friday after completion of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the Bihar electoral roll.

Addressinng a press briefing in Patna, Tejashwi Yadav conducted a live demonstration where he connected his phone to a large screen and tried to search his own EPIC number, which threw up the result "no records found".

"Now look! I am myself not registered as a voter. This disqualifies me from contesting elections. Perhaps, I cease to be treated as a citizen and stand deprived of the right to live in this house," he said.

Tejashwi Yadav also claimed that he was not provided with any receipt by the booth-level officer who came to his place with an enumeration form. "But, leaving nothing to chance, I had photographed myself while handing over my signed and duly filled-up form," the RJD leader said.

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When journalist present at the press conference asked him to find his name in the printot of the draft electoral rolls, Yadav shot back and said, "The online method is what more people have access to. Would you expect someone residing outside Bihar to come down to look up his name in the electoral rolls."

"My point is to emphasise that when people like us are at the receiving end, what to speak of the common people. I have got to hear that even an IAS officer couple has found their names missing," he said.

Hitting out at the Election Commission, Tejashwi Yadav further said that over 8 per cent voters of Bihar have lost their right to vote, alleging that the poll body did not mention the address, EPIC number and booth number of those who have been removed from the electoral roll.

"Almost 20 to 30 thousand names have been removed from every assembly constituency. A total of around 65 lakh, meaning about 8.5% of voters' names, have been removed from the list. Whenever the Election Commission issued an advertisement, it used to mention that so many people have shifted, so many people are deceased, and so many people had duplicate names," Tejashwi Yadav said.

ALSO READ: Bihar SIR News: EC Announces Daily Special Camps For Voter List Updates Across State From August 2

"But in the list provided to us by the Election Commission, they have cleverly not given the address of any voter, no booth number, and no EPIC number, so that we cannot find out whose names have been removed from the voter list," the Bihar LoP added.

ECI Reacts To Tejashwi Yadav's Claims

The Election Commission was quick to respond to Tejashwi Yadav's claims of his name not visible in the voter list and said that his name is listed at Serial Number 416 in the draft electoral roll.

"It has come to our attention that Tejashwi Yadav has made a mischievous claim that his name does not appear in the draft electoral roll. His name is listed at Serial Number 416 in the Draft Electoral Roll. Therefore, any claim stating that his name is not included in the draft electoral roll is false and factually incorrect," a statement by the Election Commission said.

ALSO READ: 'Will Step In If Mass Exclusion': SC Tells Petitioners As 65 Lakh Names Wiped Out In Bihar SIR; Hearing From Aug 12

Patna District Administration also issed a clarification on Tejashwi Yadav's claims and said that his name is included at polling station number 204, Library Building of Bihar Animal Science University.

"It has been learned from some news sources that the name of the Leader of Opposition, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, is not in the draft voter list of special intensive revision. An investigation was conducted in this regard by the District Administration, Patna. It has become clear in this that the name of the Leader of the Opposition is recorded in the draft voter list," Patna District Magistrate sai, as quoted by ANI.

"At present, his name is recorded at polling station number 204, Library Building of Bihar Animal Science University, serial number 416. Earlier, his name was recorded at polling station number 171, serial number 481, Library Building of Bihar Animal Science University," Patna DM added.