BJP directs cadre to stay vigilant in ‘sensitive’ pockets in UP during SIR | Lucknow News
Lucknow: BJP has directed its functionaries to stay vigilant in ‘sensitive’ pockets while coordinating with the Election Commission during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise which began on Tuesday. Sources in BJP said that the party has asked its booth level agents (BLAs) to reach out to voters and help booth level officers (BLOs) in the exercise, primarily carried out to ensure the purity of the voter list.A senior BJP functionary said, “The party’s ‘special focus’ will be on ‘sensitive’ areas, especially where controversy over non-revelation of identity, mainly by burqa-clad women, was reported in the past elections.” The party also plans to ratchet up the issue of “illegal infiltrators” – a recurrent theme in BJP’s political discourse from Assam to West Bengal and now to UP.“It is the duty of every individual and party to help in ensuring an authentic voter list and strengthening democracy. We will do what needs to be done,” said UP BJP spokesperson Anand Dubey. Sources said partymen have been provided with the 2003 voter list, a key reference point to be used during SIR.Analysts said BJP has been relating “voter list irregularities” with specific communities, thereby polarising the discourse without overt communal statements. This stance would allow it to consolidate Hindu vote base, particularly among non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits, who have shown inclination towards issues framed around “national integrity” and “illegal migration.”Sources said through its emphasis on ‘ghuspathiya’ (infiltrators) and ‘purity of voter lists’, BJP plans to align with its rhetoric on national security and demographic integrity – themes which resonate with Hindu vote base. Sources said BJP’s call for booth-level vigilance serves a dual purpose — strengthens party’s micro-level presence (vital for 2027 UP elections) and builds a perception of party as the protector of fair elections, pre-empting opposition claims of voter suppression.BJP also plans to use SIR to build up a groundswell by reaching out to the grassroots voters. BJP state general secretary (organisation) Dharampal Singh had recently urged party office bearers, district heads, and campaign coordinators to participate in SIR with seriousness and dedication. A senior BJP functionary said that every worker has been told to consider it their responsibility to ensure that no eligible citizen at their booth is deprived of voting because of exclusion of their name from the voter list.
