A CORRESPONDENT
BOKO: In the backdrop of allegations that special religious minority communities in Assam are being harassed during the ongoing Special Revision (SR) of electoral rolls ahead of the forthcoming Assembly election, a dramatic incident unfolded on January 22 at the Boko-Chaygaon Co-District Commissioner (CDC) Office.
According to reports, some local BJP leaders were caught late in the evening around 8:30 pm accessing government computers in the absence of officials and opening the Election Commission of India's portal to file objections (Form-7) against several voters. The act, which included attempts to delete names from the electoral rolls, was witnessed by journalists present at the site. Notably, January 22 was the last date for filing claims and objections. Locals suspect that the primary motive behind such actions was to harass a large number of voters in Boko-Chaygaon and Chamaria constituencies.
In protest against the incident, the Congress party organized a demonstration in Boko on Wednesday under the banner 'Stop Vote Theft, Vacate the Office.' The programme, initiated by the Kamrup District Congress Committee, saw participation from Boko and Bamunigaon block Congress committees. The protest march, echoing slogans such as 'Beware of Vote Thieves,' 'Catch the Vote Thieves,' and 'Save Democracy,' culminated in a gherao of the Boko-Chaygaon CDC Office.
Several prominent leaders including Congress MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed, MLA Nandita Das, former MP RP Sharma, district President Pranjit Choudhury, and APCC General Secretary Ramanna Baruah were present during the protest.
The administration facilitated a meeting between the Congress delegation and Palasbari SDO Rashmi Baruah Gogoi at the Boko-Chaygaon CDC office. The Congress representatives questioned why no case had been registered so far and alleged involvement of Boko-Chaygaon CDC Priyanshu Bhardwaj. They demanded immediate action against those responsible for the January 22 incident and submitted a memorandum to the authorities.
Meanwhile, MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed strongly criticized Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma's recent remarks targeting Miya voters. Ahmed stated that attempting to disenfranchise voters who had been exercising their democratic rights in Assam for decades was a dangerous sign for democracy.
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