'Miyas', not Assamese people, facing problem due to SR: Himanta
Guwahati (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday claimed that no Assamese people are facing any problem due to the ongoing Special Revision (SR) of electoral rolls, and only the 'Miyas' (Bengali-speaking Muslims) who are finding the exercise difficult.
The ‘Miyas’ cannot be allowed to vote in the state, the CM said on the sidelines of a programme in Digboi.
Curtailing the names of 'Miya' voters from the electoral rolls was only a preliminary step, and when the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is conducted in the state later, four to five lakh votes of Muslims from Bangladesh will be cancelled, Sarma claimed.
'Miya' is a derogatory term used for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam whose ancestors had roots in Bangladesh.
''Yes, we are trying to steal the votes of the Miyas. They should not vote in our country but in Bangladesh. We are making arrangements to ensure that they do not vote in Assam,'' Sarma said.
He asserted that there is no problem for Assamese people due to the SR, but the Miyas are facing hardship as they do not belong here.
''If Miyas are facing difficulties in this regard, why should we be concerned?” he asked.
This is the ''time for us to be cautious, and if we are not, then the Miyas will reach (places such as) Duliajan, Digboi and Tinsukia'', he alleged.
''Recently, I received a land sale list from Tinsukia. I found that more Hindus are selling off their lands and more Miya muslims are buying them. We have to be cautious and take steps now, or else they will reach all districts of Upper Assam,'' Sarma said.
The Congress can ''accuse me as much as they want, but my job is to trouble the Miyas so that they cannot vote in Assam'', he said.
Sarma had claimed earlier that only ‘Miyas’ are being served notices during the ongoing SR of electoral rolls to ‘keep them under pressure’.
He had asserted that there is no controversy surrounding the SR as no Hindu or Assamese Muslim had got notice, but only the 'Miyas'; ''else they will walk over our heads''.
The opposition parties in the state have alleged that the SR exercise is being used to harass genuine citizens, mostly religious minorities, by ‘BJP agents’, with Form 7 especially being used to complain against bona fide voters.
By using Form 7, one can request the deletion of one’s own name for any of three reasons: absent/permanently shifted, already enrolled or not an Indian citizen. Similarly, any voter of that constituency can apply for the deletion of names of others on the basis of two more reasons: death and underage.
The Election Commission had directed the conduct of SR in Assam to prepare an error-free electoral roll.
The Integrated Draft Roll was published on December 27, while the filing of claims and objections continued till January 22. The final electoral roll will be published on February 10.
The EC had ordered SR of electoral rolls in Assam as a Supreme Court-supervised exercise to verify citizenship, which is yet to be concluded. The state has separate provisions with regard to citizenship under the Citizenship Act.
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EC-TMC meet ends on bitter note; CEC asks TMC delegation to 'get lost', MP accused of 'shouting'
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New Delhi (PTI): The meeting between a Trinamool Congress delegation and the full bench of the Election Commission on Wednesday culminated on an acrimonious note, with the TMC saying the panel's chief asked them to "get lost" at the end of the seven-minute meeting, while the EC accused them of "shouting".
After the meeting, TMC's Rajya Sabha MP Derek O'Brien told mediapersons that they handed over letters from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, and also apprised him of specific instances of poll officials having links with the BJP.
"Then he said, 'Get lost'. We have done eight to nine meetings with the Election Commission. Apart from the CEC, none of the other election commissioners spoke," O'Brien said.
"While we were walking out, one of my colleagues congratulated Gyanesh Kumar for being the only CEC to have notices moved in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for his removal," O'Brien MP said.
Meanwhile, sources in the Election Commission said the poll panel chief gave a "straight talk" to TMC leaders.
They accused O'Brien of shouting at the election commissioners and alleged that he asked the CEC not to speak.
The EC sources further said the elections in West Bengal would be "fear-free, violence-free, intimidation-free, and inducement-free."
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