New Delhi, July 10 In some of the Muslim-majority districts of Bihar, Aadhaar saturation exceeds 100 per cent, BJP leader Amit Malviya said on Thursday, hinting at possible wrongdoings related to the 12-digit individual identification number, which serves as proof of identity and address for residents of India.
“Something doesn’t add up,” said the in-charge of the BJP's National Information and Technology Department on social media platform X to support the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) decision to disallow use of Aadhaar as proof of birth and residence by nearly eight crore voters during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar.
Pointing to the alleged mismatch between total population and the number of Aadhaar cards issued in Muslim-dominated districts in Bihar, Malviya said, Aadhaar saturation in the Muslim-majority districts of Bihar stands at “126 per cent in Kishanganj, 123 per cent in Katihar, 123 per cent in Araria, and 121 per cent in Purnia”.
While Bihar’s average Aadhaar saturation stands at 94 per cent, the numbers from Muslim-dominated districts raise suspicion. The Muslim population in these four districts is – Kishanganj (68 per cent Muslim population), Katihar (44 per cent), Araria (43 per cent) and Purnia (38 per cent).
“This raises the question: who are these additional Aadhaar cards made for, and why?” said Malviya, insinuating the existence of bogus or illegal Aadhaar card holders in the state.
Malviya, who is the party’s co-incharge of West Bengal, also expressed fears of similar Aadhaar-related wrongdoings in the neighbouring Trinamool Congress-ruled state.
“Now imagine what the situation must be like in West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee is already squirming,” he wrote on X.
“Who are these extra Aadhaar cards being issued to — and why? This also explains why the opposition and the Leftist lobby are so eager to push Aadhaar as proof of citizenship!” said Malviya, stopping short of alleging the presence of illegal Bangladeshis in the eastern states.
The ongoing SIR in poll-bound Bihar has generated a lot of political heat with Opposition parties alleging irregularities, a charge denied by the ECI, which has reassured the timely and smooth completion of the exercise involving nearly 7.90 crore electors.
The SIR, launched on June 24, aims to add the names of eligible citizens to the voter list and weed out ineligible voters. The previous such exercise in Bihar was carried out in 2003.
As per ECI, submitting at least one of the 11 documents is a must for verification. Aadhaar is not part of the list.
The nearly eight crore voters in Bihar are set to pick a new 243-member Assembly in the October-November election.
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