Bihar SIR row: Tejashwi Yadav targets EC with 'EPIC' barb - draws BJP's ire

NEW DELHI: RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav kicked off a political storm on Saturday after publicly claiming that his name had vanished from Bihar’s voter list—despite holding a valid EPIC number. Displaying the “no records found” message on a large screen during a press conference, the former Deputy CM alleged a larger conspiracy by the Election Commission to erase voters ahead of the assembly polls.

मतदाता सूची पुनरीक्षण (स्पेशल इंटेंसिव रिवीजन SIR 2025) की प्रक्रिया में जानबूझकर धांधली की गई है। चुनाव आयोग अब अपने ही वादों से पलट रहा है। 65 लाख मतदाताओं के वोट काटने के बाद भी नई ड्राफ्ट सूची में अस्पष्टता है। निर्वाचन आयोग द्वारा लगातार अपने निर्णय बदलने, पारदर्शिता से पीछे… pic.twitter.com/Lwx63665TF

— Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) August 2, 2025

But while Yadav accused the poll body of fraud, the BJP hit back, calling it a "delusional stunt". The poll body also rebutted Yadav's statement calling it "factually incorrect" and saying that his name was there on the voter roll.

'65 lakh names deleted': Tejashwi questions EC processTaking his criticism to social media, Tejashwi Yadav accused the Election Commission of deleting 65 lakh names from the voter rolls and posed a set of ten pointed questions. “What is the basis for declaring these 65 lakh voters as deceased, transferred, or absent?” he asked on X, tagging the EC. He questioned whether families of deceased voters were contacted, and whether those marked as "temporarily migrated" had been physically verified. “If the names of 36 lakh poor voters are removed due to temporary migration, this figure should be higher than the 3 crore registered migrant workers the Government of India itself cites,” he wrote.

चुनाव आयोग ने जिन 𝟔𝟓 लाख मतदाताओं के नाम विलोपित किए है उससे संबंधित हमारे कुछ वाजिब एवं तार्किक सवाल है। क्या @𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐒𝐕𝐄𝐄𝐏 इसका बिंदुवार जवाब देगा?

𝟏. इन 𝟔𝟓 लाख मतदाताओं को मृत, स्थानांतरित या अनुपस्थित घोषित करने का आधार क्या है? मृतक मतदाताओं के परिजनों से कौन सा…

— Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) August 2, 2025

'We have demands too': RJD lists conditions for fair process

Alongside his questions, Yadav listed four key demands from the Election Commission. First, he said, the EC must publish a booth-wise list of all voters whose names have been excluded, along with reasons. Second, a categorised list of deceased, shifted, repeated, and untraceable voters must be made public, broken down by assembly constituency and booth. Third, the deadline to raise objections—currently only 7 days—must be extended until transparency is ensured. Lastly, he called on the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of the issue.

“In a democracy, ensuring the presence and rights of every voter is paramount,” Yadav said. “If names are being removed from the voter list and the reasons behind it are being concealed, this represents a serious democratic crisis and a direct attack on the people’s voting rights.”

चुनाव आयोग से सवालों के अतिरिक्त हमारी प्रमुख माँगें भी है:-

1. निर्वाचन आयोग तत्काल उन सभी मतदाताओं की सूची कारण सहित बूथवार उपलब्ध कराए जिनका नाम ड्राफ्ट मतदाता सूची में नहीं है।

2. मृतक, शिफ्टेड, रिपीटेड और अनट्रेसेबल मतदाताओं की विधानसभा वार, बूथ वार श्रेणीबद्ध सूची…

— Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) August 2, 2025

EC, Patna DM rebut claims with voter roll details

The Election Commission denied Yadav’s allegations, calling them “mischievous” and “factually incorrect.” In a statement, the EC said his name appears in the draft voter list at serial number 416, polling station number 204, Library Building of Bihar Animal Science University. The Patna District Magistrate confirmed this, adding that his name was earlier listed at polling station 171, serial number 481. Officials said the updated draft rolls were shared with all political parties on 1 August, and the list of deletions since June was also included for verification.

The EC reiterated that the public has one month—from August 1 to September 1—to raise objections or make claims. “No name will be removed from the draft voter list without a stated reason,” the Commission said, adding that more than 7.24 crore enumeration forms were submitted and included.

This is extremely serious — if Tejashwi Yadav quoted an EPIC number different from what is recorded with the Election Commission and in his election affidavits, it could amount to criminal misconduct.

But let’s be clear — this is not an isolated instance.

The ongoing Special… https://t.co/rVBcy0OAVZ

— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) August 2, 2025

BJP leaders ridicule Tejashwi's 'delusional stunt'

BJP leaders wasted no time responding to Yadav’s claims. Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary posted what he claimed was a screenshot of Tejashwi’s voter details and accused him of spreading misinformation. “Your name is very much alongside that of your father, respected Lalu Prasad. You would do better to shut your shop dealing in fraudulent and false claims,” he said.

तेजस्वी जी आपकी योग्यता पर मुझे ही नहीं, आपके परिवार और पूरे बिहार को भी शंका है। S.I.R ड्राफ्ट में अपना नाम खोजना आपके लिए बहुत मुश्किल लग रहा होगा। आपका नाम 416 नंबर पर ससम्मान पिताजी के साथ दर्ज है, आप देख सकते हैं।

अब तो भ्रामक और फर्जीवाड़े की दुकानदारी बंद कीजिए। राजद का… pic.twitter.com/FXJ9aB6pUd

— Samrat Choudhary (@samrat4bjp) August 2, 2025

Amit Malviya, BJP’s IT cell head, took a dig at Yadav’s past comments. “Someone who doesn’t know how to find their name on the electoral roll was, not long ago, comparing themselves to Steve Jobs. Ambition is fine, but delusion is on another level altogether,” he said.

जिसे अपना नाम मतदाता सूची में खोजना नहीं आता, वो कुछ समय पहले खुद की तुलना स्टीव जॉब्स से कर रहा था — अपनी पढ़ाई पूरी न करने को सही ठहराने के लिए। 🤦‍♂️

महत्त्वाकांक्षा ठीक है, लेकिन भ्रम अलग ही स्तर की चीज़ है।

— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) August 2, 2025

Ajay Alok, another BJP leader, called Yadav “a hypocrite like Rahul Gandhi.” “When their lies were exposed, they didn’t even apologise. These people are hypocritical, fake, and corrupt,” Alok said.