Raipur, Oct 4: Union Minister Chirag Paswan on Sunday defended the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll and said that while the Election Commission has clarified all points related to the exercise, it must maintain transparency if citizens have doubts.
Speaking to reporters at the Swami Vivekananda Airport here, the chief of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), an ally in the BJP-led NDA, emphasised that an independent and impartial EC and unshakeable public faith in its functioning were essential for a healthy democracy.
Paswan questioned Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's demand for dissolving the Lok Sabha and state assemblies over alleged illegality in elections, asking whether the latter was also seeking the cancellation of polls in Congress-ruled states such as Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Kerala.
He asked if Kharge's demand extended to cancelling the election of senior leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, along with nearly 100 other Congress Lok Sabha MPs.
Accusing the Opposition of playing a purely negative role, Paswan said that opposition parties frequently raise contentious issues only to abandon them midway.
"If you have concerns and problems, you should continue to raise your voice until those concerns are resolved. But we have seen the Opposition raise its voice on different issues and then that voice disappears," he said, pointing out that earlier, there were concerns raised about EVMs, but now the Opposition doesn't even mention them.
The Union minister stated that Opposition's persistent attacks could create unnecessary doubts in the minds of voters, which is harmful to the world's largest democracy.
"My concern is about the citizens of our country. If the Opposition is making such statements and even a single citizen develops doubts or confusion in their mind, then in the world's largest democracy, any loss of public faith in the electoral process is certainly not healthy for democracy. If people have any doubts, it is the responsibility of the Election Commission to clarify them, as it is an independent constitutional institution," he said.
While praising the ECI for presenting a point-by-point clarification on the SIR exercise and dispelling people's apprehensions, Paswan said if any citizen continues to have any concern or doubt about the electoral process, the poll body must demonstrate transparency.
He noted that the Opposition itself had repeatedly highlighted errors in voter lists, such as duplicate entries and the inclusion of deceased persons, which the SIR exercise aims to systematically clean up.
Warning against political opportunism, Paswan urged people to distinguish between genuine concerns of youth and political elements operating under the guise of "Gen-Z" to disrupt progress.
"It is important to identify who genuinely belong to Gen-Z and are concerned about India and its future, and who are using the cover of Gen-Z to further political interests. Such people will raise questions even when something good is done," he said.
On his party's electoral plans in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, Paswan said the final decision would depend on the respective state units and the party's central parliamentary board.
He highlighted that LJP (Ram Vilas) had successfully adopted flexible strategies across states, contesting independently in Nagaland — where it won two assembly seats — while fighting as part of an alliance in Jharkhand.
"In Uttar Pradesh, the role is yet to be decided. The state unit has conveyed that if we have to contest alone, the party is fully capable of doing so," he said, adding that he prefers aligning with the NDA, considering Uttar Pradesh is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political base.
He also expressed confidence in expanding the party's footprint in Chhattisgarh, pointing to a strong traditional voter base built by his late father, Ram Vilas Paswan.
The Union minister also defended the Bihar government's handling of recent criminal incidents, and said public concern over crime had increased, but swift action against those accused was important to establish the rule of law.
"Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary is fully capable of controlling crime as home minister. The administration should also support him with the same determination so that together we can establish the sense of security that Bihar needs," he said.
Paswan was in Raipur to attend a youth conclave organised under the "ROLBOL" initiative, which stands for "Rest of Life, Best of Life".
