Jharkhand’s health minister Irfan Ansari (File photo)
Jharkhand’s health minister Irfan Ansari is under fire over his alleged call to people to lock up booth-level officers when they visit homes during the special intensive revision of electoral rolls. Opposition parties in the state have condemned the remark and demanded his removal, while Election Commission has sought a report.Ansari, a Congress member, made the controversial statement on Sunday during a govt programme in Jamtara district. Following backlash, he clarified on Monday that his words were being misinterpreted by certain sections to “defame” him.In a video, which has gone viral, Ansari is heard asking people to lock up BLOs when they visit their homes and inform him. Alleging that the SIR exercise in Bihar had removed 65 lakh voters from electoral rolls, he said: “Their names were deleted and BJP got 22 lakh new voters of their choice, leading to our (INDIA bloc) loss in the (Bihar assembly) election,” he said.Jamtara’s deputy commissioner Ravi Anand was on the stage when Ansari was addressing the gathering.EC is learned to have taken cognizance of the matter. A senior official at the state chief electoral officer’s office said, “A notice has been issued to Jamtara administration asking for a detailed report.”
