SIR pending before Supreme Court, cant be discussed in Lok Sabha: Kiren Rijiju
Union Minister Rijiju explained the Lok Sabha's refusal to debate Bihar's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voters' list, citing the Supreme Court's pending adjudication of the matter. Parliamentary rules prohibit discussing sub judice issues.
New Delhi: Kiren Rijiju, the Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, said on Wednesday that the issue of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of the Bihar voters' list, which has created a political storm in the country, cannot be discussed in the Lok Sabha.
Why can SIR not be discussed in the Lok Sabha?
Rijiju said the matter cannot be discussed in the Lok Sabha as it is pending before the Supreme Court. Rules do not allow issues pending adjudication to be discussed in the Lok Sabha. Hence, the discussion over the SIR can take place in the Lower House of the Parliament only after the apex court has given its verdict regarding the matter.
The protest in the Parliament
The Opposition relentlessly protested in the Parliament as they wanted a discussion on the SIR issue. However, Rijiju informed the agitated protesters that the Lok Sabha's rules disallow discussion on sub judice matters on the floor of the House. Also, he said that they cannot discuss in the Parliament the functioning of autonomous institutions like the Election Commission of India. He told them that members should participate in the debate when key legislations are passed.
The missing voters' list in Bengal
In other news, rumours are rife that the ECI will implement the SIR in Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections early next year. The organisation has started to publish the voters' list of the state from 2002 and has reportedly found that the voters' lists of four Assembly constituencies in two districts of the state are not available.
Also, the ECI has suspended four government officers of the state, two Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and two Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs). Those people allegedly included names of fictitious voters in the electoral rolls of the state. Also, the ECI has directed Bengal's Chief Secretary to file FIRs against the four officials and a data entry operator for criminal misconduct.