Kolkata, Aug 13 (IANS) Trinamool Congress General Secretary and the leader of the party in the Lok Sabha, Abhishek Banerjee, has dared the BJP-led Central government to immediately dissolve the Lok Sabha and conduct Special Intensive Revision (SIR) by the Election Commission of India (ECI) across the country and not selectively in poll-bound states.

Using his social media handle, Banerjee said people of the country have been betrayed after the Election Commission claimed the voters’ list in various states is filled with irregularities.

“The EC has stated that the voter lists across various states on the basis of which the GENERAL ELECTIONS were held barely a year ago in 2024 are FAULTY and riddled with IRREGULARITIES,” he said.

“If that is indeed the case, and if the GoI agrees with the EC’s assessment, then the first step towards conducting a genuine SIR and STANDING ON MORAL HIGH GROUND is the IMMEDIATE DISSOLUTION OF LOK SABHA. If one truly supports the idea of SIR, then as per the EC’s own statement – THE PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTRY HAVE BEEN BETRAYED,” said the Trinamool Congress leader.

He also urged the Election Commission to conduct SIR across the country. “Also, If the new CEC is truly as competent as claimed, then the SIR should be implemented across the country, not selectively in poll-bound states,” he said.

Banerjee on Tuesday said the SIR proposed by the ECI was acceptable only if the current Parliament is dissolved. He said that if he agreed that SIR was necessary since there were manipulations in the voters’ list, then it should also be accepted that the last Lok Sabha elections were conducted with that manipulated voters’ list.

“So the current Parliament should be dismantled. Since the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister were elected by that manipulated voters’ list, they should also resign. In the meantime, there were Assembly elections in some states, with a manipulated voters’ list. So the Assemblies in those states should also be dismantled,” Banerjee told media persons outside the Kolkata Airport.

He said that legal action should be initiated against former Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar since, under his leadership, such elections with a ‘manipulated voters’ list were conducted.

The ECI on Monday issued a fact-check dismissing as “incorrect” statements issued by agitating Opposition leaders over alleged “voter list manipulation”.

–IANS

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