Mumbai, May 23 (IANS) The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee President Harshwardhan Sapkal has warned that those who are murdering democracy and manipulating voter lists will have to go to jail in the coming days.

He claimed on Friday that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in Maharashtra by stealing votes with the help of the Election Commission.

“By deleting voters’ names in Bihar and Bengal too, the BJP managed to secure victories. Attempts are now underway to influence the electoral process through voter list revision exercises,” Sapkal alleged.

He was speaking at the state-level party meeting amid the voter list revision (Special Intensive Revision or SIR) campaign being carried out in the state through the Election Commission.

Detailed discussions were held on alleged irregularities in the voter list, vote theft and the SIR process.

Sapkal said that a special workshop regarding Booth Level Agents-1 under the SIR campaign had been conducted successfully and detailed booth-level planning had been completed across the state.

A team of national-level experts and experienced state office-bearers trained party workers extensively on the electoral process, voter list verification, objections and corrections.

He expressed confidence that the Congress was fully prepared to protect every voter.

Sapkal also said that the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee had decided to establish a special committee for the SIR campaign.

Legislative Council Congress group leader Satej alias Bunty Patil has been appointed as the head of the committee, while Abhijit Sapkal will serve as coordinator.

The committee will work in coordination with district and taluka-level machinery across Maharashtra to accelerate the voter list verification drive.

Targeting the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the state government over the petrol and diesel shortage in the state, Sapkal said, “The Chief Minister’s statement on the petrol and diesel shortage once again proves that he has become ‘Ghajini’. The state government has absolutely no attention towards the serious problems faced by the people.”

Speaking on the reservation issue, the State Congress Chief accused the BJP of creating divisions in society.

Sapkal said, “The reservation issue should be resolved through a caste-based census. The BJP-led MahaYuti is deceiving the Maratha, OBC, Dhangar and all other communities. Attempts are being made to create conflict between several castes for political gain. Maharashtra witnessed the promises made before the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and the celebratory gulal that followed. But the state government must answer what it has actually done regarding reservation.”

Congress Legislature Party leader Vijay Wadettiwar criticised the Maharashtra government on the farmers’ issue, saying, “This (MahaYuti) government is completely ‘anti-farmer’. Farmers no longer have the financial strength required even to repay loans eligible for waiver. While the rural economy is collapsing, the state government is engaged only in making announcements.”

–IANS

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