Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav will lead the Chakka Jam protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, mobilising thousands across Patna and nearby districts to oppose what the INDIA bloc claims is a discriminatory and politically motivated voter list update process, reported India Today.
The protest, scheduled for July 9, 2025, is being organised jointly by the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), with support from other INDIA bloc constituents. The political alliance alleges that the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision is being misused to arbitrarily delete names from the voter rolls in Opposition strongholds ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls.
Speaking ahead of the agitation, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav stated that “this Chakka Jam is not just a protest, it’s a warning against any attempt to distort democracy.” Congress leader Rahul Gandhi echoed the sentiment, accusing the ruling government of weaponising electoral procedures to manipulate electoral outcomes. “The voter list is the soul of our democracy. Tampering with it is tampering with the people’s will,” he said.
The Chakka Jam is expected to see major road blockades across Patna, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, and other urban centres, with party workers and civil society supporters joining in large numbers. Protest organisers have said that emergency services will be allowed to pass and that the demonstration will be peaceful.
According to sources in the Election Commission, the ongoing Special Intensive Revision aims to update the rolls based on field verification, shifting of voters, and deletion of ineligible names. However, Opposition leaders argue that the revision drive is being selectively executed in areas with high minority and Dalit populations — communities seen as traditional voters of the INDIA bloc.
A senior Congress leader in Bihar claimed that thousands of voters were being delisted without proper verification, allegedly under pressure from the ruling BJP-JD(U) coalition. “We’ve received reports from across districts — names are vanishing, especially in areas where the BJP performed poorly in the Lok Sabha polls,” the leader said.
The Election Commission, meanwhile, has maintained that the revision exercise is being conducted according to standard operating procedures, with adequate transparency and grievance redress mechanisms in place.
Political analysts believe the Chakka Jam protest is part of the INDIA bloc’s broader strategy to corner the ruling dispensation on governance and electoral integrity ahead of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections. “By turning this into a public movement, the Opposition is trying to energise its cadre and reclaim lost ground,” said Patna-based political commentator Rajeev Ranjan.
Security has been heightened in major cities ahead of the protest, with the Bihar Police deploying additional forces and placing rapid response teams on standby. The administration has also appealed to citizens to maintain calm and avoid unnecessary travel in protest-prone areas.
The issue of electoral roll revision has become a flashpoint between the ruling NDA and the Opposition in several states, but the stakes in Bihar are particularly high. With Assembly polls just months away, both alliances are treating this as a do-or-die political battle.
As the INDIA bloc leaders prepare to take to the streets, the Chakka Jam is shaping up to be more than just a one-day protest. It’s a battle for the narrative — one where the integrity of the electoral process and the right to vote are at the centre of a heated political tug-of-war.
Photo Credit: India Today
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