Lucknow: Following the Election Commission of India (ECI) directive concerning the identification of burqa-clad women voters, the decision has sparked controversy as the Samajwadi Party (SP) has said that it undermines transparent, free, and fair elections. However, the BJP has defended the decision.

According to the Election Commission, Anganwadi workers will be deployed at polling booths to assist in verifying the identity of burqa-clad women voters. The directive, however, has drawn sharp criticism from the SP, which has urged the ECI to immediately withdraw the order, terming it discriminatory and unconstitutional.

SP's Uttar Pradesh president Shyam Lal Pal submitted a memorandum to the state's Chief Electoral Officer, addressed to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, asserting that the directive violates existing ECI rules and unfairly targets a specific community. "The Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has issued a new directive contrary to the Election Commission of India's rules, raising questions about the Commission's impartiality and transparency. This new rule targets voters of a particular community in the country; it is undemocratic and unconstitutional. The Election Commission's decision is wrong; the new directive targets a particular community," Pal said in the memorandum.

Reacting to SP's criticism, Uttar Pradesh Minister Anil Rajbhar hit back, accusing the party of politicising the issue for vote-bank gains. "Why are you worried? Is your politics dependent on bogus voters? What exactly concerns you? The identity of every voter who goes to vote must be verified. If the Election Commission wants to implement such a system, who should object? If the voter is a woman, a female official will verify her identity, so what's the problem?" Rajbhar told IANS.

"They get upset only when action is taken against infiltrators. The ECI is trying to get the bogus voter removed from the voter list through SIR, and they have a problem with that, also. Very soon, the public is going to give them a befitting reply," he added. Supporting the SP's stance, party MP Awdesh Prasad said, "I support the decision to write to the ECI demanding the withdrawal of those rules." 

(IANS)