New Delhi, Nov 26 (IANS ) The ruling AAP in Delhi and the Opposition BJP on Tuesday crossed swords over the deletion of fake names from the electoral rolls with Chief Minister Atishi alleging an attempt by the Central government to rig the Assembly elections by cutting votes of her party and the BJP junking the allegation.
Addressing the media, CM Atishi said she was getting inputs from many booth-level officers (BLOs) and assistant electoral registration officers (AEROs) that they were told by SDMs that they have to remove names of AAP voters from electoral rolls as instructed by the BJP-led Central government.
The Delhi BJP countered the allegation by calling it the ruling AAP’s admission of defeat in the upcoming Assembly election and an attempt to spread misinformation about the removal of fake and “burqa voters” from the voters list.
CM Atishi also claimed that the BLOs and AEROs had been strictly instructed by BJP-controlled officials not to add names of any new voters.
She said this browbeating of the BLO-level officials was a clear sign of the BJP’s realisation that it cannot win the Assembly elections in a fair manner.
“I appeal to all the AEROs and BLOs if any officer tells them to indulge in vote-cutting you record their statement on phones and send the recording to me,” she said, promising to protect upright officials.
She also slammed the decision of Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena to remove 29 SDMs and Additional District Magistrates through his order issued on October 28.
“This is a part of preparations to rig the Assembly elections,” said CM Atishi.
Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva said the CM’s allegations about vote-cutting clearly revealed her fear of an impending defeat.
It was evident that CM Atishi has already been informed by her party’s internal survey that Team Kejriwal’s exit from Delhi is inevitable.
Consequently, she is spreading misinformation about the removal of fake and “burqa voters” from the voter list, he said.
The Delhi BJP president challenged Team Kejriwal to stop making political statements about the rectification of the Delhi voters’ list and instead file a complaint with the Election Commission of India or seek redressal through the judiciary.
“No matter how much political noise AAP leaders make, their departure from Delhi is certain in February 2025,” said Sachdeva.
The Delhi BJP president alleged that for years the Congress and the AAP have relied on fake duplicate voters and “burqa voters” to win in Delhi.
However, after BJP’s resounding victories in Haryana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Rajasthan by-elections, parties like the Congress and the AAP were now questioning the electoral process and the impartiality of the Election Commission.