SIR exposes BJP’s Old City smear campaign: Waliullah Sameer

Hyderabad: With no illegal immigrants detected in the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls in the city, the Hyderabad Lok Sabha Congress in-charge, Mohammed Waliullah Sameer, on Thursday, November 4, accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of maligning the Old City through repeated allegations that Rohingya Muslims and illegal Bangladeshi immigrants had been enrolled as voters.

Reacting to the clarification issued by Hyderabad District Election Officer and GHMC Commissioner R V a day ago, Sameer said the SIR had exposed what he described as a politically motivated campaign to defame the predominantly Muslim neighbourhoods of Hyderabad.

“For years, BJP leaders have portrayed Hyderabad’s Old City as a haven for Rohingyas and illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. They repeatedly alleged that thousands of foreigners had obtained fraudulent documents and voting rights with the support of political parties. Now, the election authorities’ own verification exercise has failed to establish even one such case. Who will take responsibility for defaming our city and its people?” he asked.

The only foreign nationals identified in Hyderabad were 10-12 Nepali citizens in Sanathnagar, who had entered India legally but were removed from the rolls because they did not possess Indian citizenship.

‘What about 3 cr illegal immigrants?’

Sameer said the findings were significant in the context of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s November 2 statement at a BJP rally in Hyderabad, that nearly three crore illegal infiltrators, largely Bangladeshis, had been identified during the nationwide SIR exercise. Shah had also accused the Congress of protecting them for electoral gains.

“If Amit Shah claims that three crore infiltrators were found, he must produce constituency-wise evidence. How many were actually identified as foreigners? How many were merely absent, shifted or untraceable voters? These are entirely different categories. The BJP cannot label millions of people as infiltrators without documentary proof,” Sameer said.

The Congress leader pointed out that nearly 9.19 lakh electors were excluded from the draft electoral rolls of the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency. The 9,19,088 names represent 39.46 per cent of the constituency’s pre-revision electorate of 23.29 lakh.

“Nearly four of every ten voters in the Hyderabad parliamentary constituency were missing from the draft rolls. Yet the authorities found no Rohingya or Bangladeshi voters in Hyderabad district. If these people were not infiltrators, what explains such massive exclusions? How many genuine Indian citizens have been wrongly excluded? The Election Commission must provide clear answers,” Sameer asked.

‘Findings enforce Rahul Gandhi’s vote chori allegation’

He said the Hyderabad findings reinforced Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s repeated allegations of ‘vote chori’ and raised serious concerns about electoral roll revisions.

“Rahul Gandhi has consistently warned that genuine voters could be deprived of their franchise through manipulation of electoral rolls. Hyderabad’s experience strengthens those concerns. The BJP speaks of crores of infiltrators, but its allegations against the Old City remain unsupported by local findings. Meanwhile, lakhs of names have disappeared from the draft rolls. This contradiction demands an independent investigation,” he said.

‘Absent voter not an infiltrator, all different categories’

Sameer stressed that deceased voters, shifted residents, duplicate entries, untraceable electors and foreign nationals were entirely different categories. “An absent voter is not an infiltrator. A person who has shifted residence is not a Bangladeshi. The BJP cannot use electoral statistics to manufacture allegations against an entire community,” he said.

He alleged that BJP leaders had repeatedly targeted Charminar, Yakutpura, Chandrayangutta, Bahadurpura and other Old City neighbourhoods to create suspicion about residents’ citizenship.

“Hyderabad’s Old City is home to generations of Indian citizens who have contributed immensely to its culture, economy and history. They are not required to prove their patriotism whenever the BJP wants to polarise voters,” he said.

He demanded that the Election Commission publish a constituency-wise breakdown of the 9.19 lakh exclusions, independently review potentially wrongful omissions and ensure the restoration of every eligible voter’s name.

Demanding a public apology from BJP leaders for their unsubstantiated allegations, Sameer said, “The people of the Old City deserve better roads, education, healthcare, employment and infrastructure, not repeated accusations against their identity and citizenship. Electoral roll revision must protect democracy, not become an instrument of political intimidation.”

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