Union minister Giriraj Singh wants couples with more than two children stripped of right to vote
Patna: Union minister Giriraj Singh on Thursday expressed alarm over the "population explosion" in the country since Independence and favoured disenfranchisement of those who sired more than two children.
The BJP leader from Bihar, known for making controversial remarks, shared a graphic on his official Twitter handle on World Population Day which showed that India's population grew by a staggering 366 per cent between 1947 and 2019 as against only 113 per cent rise in sparsely populated US.
Singh, the Minister of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, wrote in Hindi--"In India, population explosion is disturbing the balance of economy, social harmony and resources. One of the reasons (for failure to check it) is dhaarmik vyavadhan (religious obstacles)," apparently hinting at Muslims.
Several leaders of the Hindu right have often blamed Muslims for the spurt in country's population.
Striking an alarmist note, the cabinet minister warned: "India appears to be heading like in 1947 towards another a 'saanskritik vibhajan' (partition in the name of culture). All political parties will have to come forward for a birth control law."
Later, he told some news channels in Delhi that strong measures must be in place to check population explosion.
"I hold the view that those who have more than two children should be stripped of their voting rights. And this provision must be applicable to all communities. No exemption should be made for any religious group just because it insists that its tenets disapprove of birth control measures, he said.
The BJP leader's views met with disapproval from the opposition RJD-Congress combine in the state.
Bihar RJD president Ram Chandra Purbe termed Singhs comments an example of ochhi rajneeti (petty politics) since it appeared to blame the minorities for the ballooning population.
"From where does the Union minister get such fanciful ideas? Can he point out any provision in the Constitution under which a person can be disenfranchised for having more than a specified number of children?" asked Congress MLC Prem Chandra Mishra.
Singh has often kicked up controversies with his remarks targeting Muslims.
A case of model code violation was registered against him during the Lok Sabha elections when he was in the fray from Begusarai for making objectionable comments against Muslims.
"Those who cannot say Vande Mataram or cannot respect the motherland, the nation will never forgive them. My ancestors died and were cremated at Simaria ghat and no grave was built for them but you [Muslims] need three hand spans of space (for burial)," he had told an election rally.
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We will move court again to resist voter deletions: Mamata
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday hit out at the BJP and the Election Commission over voter deletions during the SIR exercise and said her party will move a court again to resist the removal of electors from the rolls.
Her comments came after nearly 91 lakh voters' names were deleted from the electoral rolls following the completion of the Special Intensive Revision in the state.
“You will not be able to defeat the TMC by deleting names. We will move a court again to resist the exclusion of names," Banerjee said while attacking her principal challenger BJP over the roll revision exercise.
Banerjee had in February argued in the Supreme Court as she sought an intervention in the SIR process.
The EC figures, which pushed the total deletion to over 90.83 lakh names from the original voter base of 7.66 crore in October 2025, showed that the proportion of removal of electors now remains at over 11.85 per cent.
Criticising the poll panel over the SIR process, she also said, "We will fight legally to get the names included on the list as per the Constitution. If people cannot cast their votes, what is the need to frame the tribunal? And then you are saying that the list has been frozen. What is this? We will challenge it and try to understand it."
Addressing a poll rally at Arambagh in Hooghly district, the TMC supremo accused the saffron party of trying to manipulate the electoral rolls and offering money to woo voters.
Banerjee also charged the Election Commission with intimidating people over the phone.
“It (EC) is working at the behest of the BJP. It is calling people over the telephone to threaten and intimidate them,” she claimed.
Later, while speaking at a rally in Balagarh in the same district, Banerjee warned that voting for the BJP would effectively mean "giving up fish, meat, and speaking in Bengali".
“People are not allowed to eat eggs, fish, or meat in the BJP-ruled states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. The same will happen here if the BJP comes to power," Banerjee claimed.
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