The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday, 27 May welcomed the Supreme Court's ruling upholding the Election Commission of India's (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, calling it a comprehensive repudiation of the Indian National Congress (Congress) on moral, judicial, and constitutional grounds.

BJP's Reaction to the Verdict

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in New Delhi, BJP National Spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi described the Supreme Court's order as 'a complete defeat of the Congress party.' He argued that the party had already suffered a moral setback through its performance in the Bihar and Bengal Assembly elections, and that the court's rejection of its plea now compounded that with a judicial and constitutional defeat.

'The massive defeat in the Bihar and Bengal Assembly elections, followed by a nefarious attempt to instigate anarchy in the country, was a moral defeat for the Congress party. Today, its plea was rejected by the Supreme Court, and therefore this makes it a complete defeat for the party — on moral, judicial and constitutional grounds,' Trivedi said.

What the Supreme Court Ruled

According to Trivedi, the top court held that the SIR was conducted on legitimate grounds, is consistent with the Representation of the People Act, and is essential for ensuring free and fair elections. The BJP used the ruling to accuse Congress of deliberately stirring 'needless controversy and confusion' over the purging of electoral rolls ahead of the state polls.

BJP's Charge of Deceit and Disinformation

Trivedi levelled pointed allegations against Congress, accusing the party of running a disinformation campaign rather than engaging voters on the ground. 'Congress did nothing on the ground; their leaders and booth managers were nowhere to be seen during canvassing, rather they only resorted to fear-mongering over SIR and tried to divert attention,' he said.

He also questioned the number of campaign rallies held by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Bihar and Bengal, contrasting them with what he described as an intensive poll blitzkrieg by BJP's top ministers and party president. In a pointed charge, Trivedi alleged that Congress's INDIA bloc allies had 'hurled abuses at Bihari migrants and questioned their DNA,' calling it an insult to voters' sentiments.

Congress Yet to Respond

Congress had not issued an official response to Trivedi's remarks at the time of reporting. The party had challenged the SIR process, arguing it risked disenfranchising legitimate voters. The Supreme Court's decision to uphold the exercise is likely to shape the political narrative around electoral roll management in the run-up to future state contests.

With both Bihar and Bengal results now in, and the Supreme Court closing this legal avenue, the political battle over the SIR is expected to shift back to the legislative and public discourse arenas.