Lucknow. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the opposition parties over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR). He accused the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and other opposition parties of trying to weaken constitutional institutions and democratic values for political interests. Terming the statements being given by the opposition as irresponsible, the Chief Minister said that such statements should be stopped. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath raised questions on the attitude of the opposition while talking to journalists in Lucknow. He alleged that the attitude of Congress and its allies towards constitutional institutions has been harmful in the past also. He said that the current rhetoric of the country’s main opposition party and its allies is harmful for democratic values.
The Chief Minister specifically mentioned the ongoing protests regarding the SIR process. He termed the questions being raised by Congress, Samajwadi Party and RJD regarding this process as unfortunate. According to Yogi Adityanath, the opposition is creating confusion on this issue and putting a constitutional institution like the Election Commission under question. Yogi Adityanath said that the process of SIR is not being done for the first time in the country. He claimed that even before this the process of special intensive revision of the voter list had been done at different times. According to him, such a process took place in 1952, 1957, 1961, 1965-66 and 2003 also. He said that on many of these occasions there were Congress-led governments at the Centre.
The Chief Minister raised the question that when such a process has already been done then why is there so much opposition regarding the current SIR. Regarding the opposition being made by Congress, SP, RJD and other parties, he said that such uproar is very unfortunate. Yogi Adityanath, while presenting the Election Commission’s side, said that the position regarding the SIR process has been clarified by the Commission. He said that it has also been made clear that eligible voters will be given the opportunity to complete the necessary process. Despite this, it is not appropriate to put the Election Commission and the Chief Election Commissioner in the circle of questions.
The Chief Minister alleged that when the election results are not in their favor, the opposition parties start raising questions on the Election Commission and the Electronic Voting Machine i.e. EVM. He said that through these electoral systems, governments of opposition parties including Congress have also been formed. He said that in case of winning the election, the opposition does not raise questions on the electoral system, but in case of defeat, an attempt is made to hold the Election Commission or EVM responsible. Yogi Adityanath asked the opposition parties to introspect on their political performance and policies.
Referring to the previous stand of the Congress, the Chief Minister accused it of repeatedly raising questions regarding constitutional institutions. He said that it is natural to have political differences in a democracy, but a responsible attitude should be adopted towards constitutional institutions. Yogi Adityanath said that the recent activities and statements of the opposition parties are extremely irresponsible. He alleged that efforts are being made to weaken the constitutional institutions of the country for political interests, which can harm the democratic system. These allegations have been made by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Rejecting the opposition’s objections regarding SIR, the Chief Minister said that the process of revising the voter list is not a new system. He raised questions on the current protest by giving examples of the processes that took place in the past years. He also mentioned the clarification given by the Election Commission. According to Yogi Adityanath, the Election Commission has clarified its position on giving opportunities to eligible voters under the process and on issues related to SIR.
The Chief Minister said that there should be no place for violence, vandalism and misinformation in democracy. He appealed to the Congress and its allies to consider their attitude and behave responsibly towards constitutional institutions. The opposition has its own objections regarding SIR. Opposition parties, including Congress, have raised questions regarding this process related to removal of names of voters and fairness of the electoral process. Congress has publicly expressed its concerns regarding SIR.
Amidst this political controversy, Yogi Adityanath has hit back at the opposition. Taking direct aim at Congress, Samajwadi Party and RJD, he said that irresponsible statements regarding constitutional institutions harm democratic values. Yogi Adityanath also demanded an apology from Congress and its allies to the constitutional institutions and the people of the country. He said that political parties should introspect about the kind of allegations being made by the opposition regarding the Election Commission and SIR.
In his statement, the Chief Minister emphasized on maintaining the dignity of constitutional institutions. He said that political parties should express their differences in a democratic manner and avoid such statements which affect people’s trust in institutions. Overall, amid the ongoing political controversy over the SIR process, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has made a scathing attack on Congress, SP, RJD and other opposition parties. He accused the opposition of undermining constitutional institutions and democratic values for political interests.
CM Yogi’s big statement on constitutional institutions
