Stalin Says Deletion Of Voters’ Names In Bihar Worse Than Terrorism

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday said that the deletion of voters’ names from electoral lists is worse than terrorism, PTI reported. He asserted that the INDIA bloc would win the Bihar assembly polls "if the elections were free and fair". 

Stalin gave the remarks as he joined Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, RJD's Tejashwi Yadav and CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya for the ongoing 'Voter Adhikar Yatra' in Bihar. He was accompanied by his sister and party MP Kanimozhi. 

Stalin delivered his speech in Tamil while addressing a rally in Muzaffarpur which evoked applause from the crowds as it was translated into Hindi.

He commenced his speech by recalling the close friendship between his late father K Karunanidhi and RJD president Lalu Prasad, the father of Tejashwi Yadav, whom he hailed for "tirelessly championing social justice and never getting cowed down by the BJP".

"For the past one month, the entire nation has been looking keenly at Bihar... the Election Commission has become a remote-controlled puppet," alleged Stalin, who was impressed with the response to the yatra taken out in protest against the special intensive revision of electoral rolls.

"Is the deletion of names of 65 lakh people (from the draft electoral rolls) not worse than terrorism?" the Tamil Nadu CM asked. Stalin said that even though Gandhi’s “vote chori" claims were challenged by the Election Commission, the Congress leader would not be scared. 

"I have seen Rahul's camaraderie with Tejashwi, who ride motorcycles together. This friendship is deeper than a run-of-the-mill political partnership. And I am sure that if the elections are free and fair, the BJP-led NDA will be defeated," he asserted.

He promised to the crowd that he would be back for the swearing-in ceremony once the INDIA bloc wins the elections. 

With PTI inputs