Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Saturday questioned Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's claim that 1.27 crore Hindu voters had been deleted from the state's electoral rolls, demanding that he disclose the names and constituencies concerned and explain how the figure was calculated.
Addressing a press conference, Sibal said the Chief Minister should make the details public instead of merely citing a figure, particularly when questions were being raised over the electoral roll revision exercise.
"I want to ask Yogi ji, how do you know this figure? If you know which names have been removed, put them before the people. Which names have been deleted from which constituencies?" he asked.
Sibal also cautioned against the possibility of names being added through Form 8 when they had not actually been deleted from the electoral rolls, warning that such irregularities could influence election results.
"It should not happen that names which have not been removed are added once again through Form 8. If one crore names are added, they (BJP) will win the election," he said.
Referring to Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya's assertion that the revision exercise had been conducted properly, Sibal questioned the apparent contradiction between the statements of the state's senior leaders.
"Neither Yogi ji knows, nor Maurya ji knows, nor do the people know what is happening. Only the Centre knows," he alleged.
๐๐น๐น๐ถ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐
Sibal also expressed concern over the possible electoral impact of the recently announced alliance between the Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) in Uttar Pradesh.
He said the alliance between Nagina MP Chandra Shekhar Aazad's party and Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM could attract votes from Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and minority communities, potentially affecting the electoral prospects of the Samajwadi Party and Congress.
According to Sibal, even if the alliance fails to win seats, the votes it secures could alter the outcome in constituencies where victory margins are narrow.
"The margins in assembly elections are narrow. You are against the BJP, you keep speaking against the BJP. If the votes which are not going to the BJP go to you, it will make a difference," he said.
Referring to allegations that Aazad was indirectly helping the BJP, Sibal said he was not endorsing those claims but believed the alliance could weaken opposition parties.
"Some people are alleging that you (Aazad) are acting at the behest of the BJP. I am not saying that. But I can see that it will impact the Samajwadi Party and Congress. Ultimately, we all want the BJP to lose," he said.
๐ฉ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฟ๐ผ๐น๐น ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐๐น๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐
Raising concerns about alleged manipulation of electoral rolls, Sibal cited instances from Maharashtra, particularly Pune, where complaints of wrongful deletion of voters and shifting of names between constituencies had prompted inquiries.
Explaining the electoral registration process, he said Form 6 is used for inclusion of names in electoral rolls, Form 7 for seeking deletion and Form 8 for shifting residence or correcting voter particulars.
He said Forms 6 and 8 are meant to be submitted by the voters concerned, while Form 7 allows another person to seek deletion of a voter's name, subject to prescribed procedures.
Citing a report published in *The Indian Express*, Sibal referred to a complaint by NCP leader Ajit Gavhane alleging that 58 voters had been wrongfully removed from electoral rolls through Form 7.
He said a subsequent inquiry identified 5,603 such cases across several constituencies.
Sibal further claimed that the Pune district election officer had flagged instances of voters being shifted between constituencies through Form 8.
He also referred to findings by election officials in Pimpri, Thane and Khadakwasla, where applications for changes of address were allegedly approved without field verification by booth-level officers.
"The CEO office ordered an inquiry. Officials admitted that Form 8 applications were accepted without any field verification. Someone else was filing these forms, and claiming that the voter had shifted," he alleged.
Sibal claimed that procedures governing all three forms were being manipulated and questioned the Election Commission's assurance that wrongfully deleted names would be restored.
"Form 6, Form 7 and Form 8 -- there has been fraud in all three forms. The Election Commission is now saying that the names that were deleted will be restored. But why were they deleted in the first place?" he asked.
"At the national level, the Election Commission has committed acts that should not be forgiven. It is a betrayal of democracy," he alleged.
๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐น๐ถ๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
Responding to speculation about a second part of Parliament's Monsoon Session, Sibal expressed doubts about the possibility of substantial legislative business.
He remarked that the first part of the session had been "dry" and predicted that the second would be no different.
Sibal also alleged that defections by MPs from the MAITC and Shiv Sena (UBT) were intended to help the BJP secure a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament.
His remarks came amid continuing political debate over electoral roll revisions, opposition alliances and the functioning of democratic institutions.