SP, Congress focus primarily on criticising BJP rather than serving people: UP Minister Swatantra Dev Singh

Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh) [India], November 20 (ANI): Uttar Pradesh Minister Swatantra Dev Singh has criticised the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress, accusing them of focusing solely on criticising the BJP rather than serving the people.
Singh further emphasised that the BJP's primary goal is to serve the poor whenever it forms the government at the central or state level.
Speaking to reporters, Singh said, "The SP and Congress, whether in Bihar or elsewhere in the country, focus primarily on criticising the BJP rather than serving the people. Their main goal is to abuse the BJP. Whenever we form the government at the central or state level, the BJP's only aim is to serve the poor. Politics is our mission, not a business. Meanwhile, the SP and Congress persistently emphasise casteism, dynastic politics, and regionalism. Consequently, during elections, the Election Commission works to increase voter turnout, and anyone with concerns is encouraged to raise their issues."
Earlier on Tuesday, the Congress party held a meeting at the party's headquarters, Indira Bhawan, in the national capital to review preparations related to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 12 States and Union Territories, days after the party suffered a disappointing result in the Bihar Assembly elections.
The Congress has alleged a pattern of "voter theft" during recent Bihar elections.
The Mahagathbandhan, which included the RJD, Congress, CPI(ML)(L), CPI(M) and other Left partners, secured 34 seats in total, in which RJD won 25 seats, INC won 6 seats, CPI(ML)(L) secured two seats, and CPI(M) won one seat. In contrast to the National Democratic Alliance's tally, where the BJP won 89 seats, the JD(U) won 85, and other allies, including the LJP (RV), HAM (S), and RLM, secured 28 seats collectively.
Senior Congress leader Ghulam Ahmad Mir accused the Election Commission of presiding over an electoral process that "lacks transparency."
"SIR is an official way to commit (vote) theft. Seventy lakh votes were deleted in Bihar. Addition and subtraction of votes were seen during polling. This is not a transparent way of electioneering," Mir alleged. He also criticised the Bihar government's welfare announcements during the election cycle, stating the timing had "influenced" the poorest voters.
Hitting out at the Election Commission, Congress MP Manickam Tagore called the SIR "an attack on the democratic process itself."
"SIR is an attack on the democratic process itself in the name of deleting the names of dead voters and others, it (SIR) has been pushed by the BJP and implemented by the Election Commission. Following the SIR in Bihar, 62 lakh voters have been deleted... Our BLAs are on the ground and mobilising voters to get their names enrolled. This is a huge process with very little time, and there is immense pressure on the BLOs. We have seen various incidents of suicide in Rajasthan and Kerala. There is a strike in Tamil Nadu by all the BLOs today," Tagore said.
Tagore added that the SIR exercise in Assam was allegedly being used "to delete Congress voters," calling it a "conspiracy to save the Himanta Biswa Sarma government," which he claimed was facing public discontent.
"There is a lot of pressure on those officers on the ground, and the Election Commission, without any kind of practicality, they are pushing for it, and in Assam, SIR is helping the BJP to delete the Congress voters. This is a conspiracy to save the Himanta Biswa Sarma government in Assam because this government is unpopular, we all know that and they are going to be defeated by the people of Assam," Tagore told ANI.
After Bihar, the second phase of the SIR revision of electoral rolls is underway in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. Of these, Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry will be contesting the Assembly elections in April-May next year (2026). (ANI)