By Kavita Sharma

Photo Credit: The Suncity News

Patna, October 5, 2026: Tejashwi Yadav, leader of the opposition and the Bihar Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance), has announced a two-day protest against the Election Commission regarding the ‘Special Intensive Revision’ (SIR) of the voter list. He stated that the alliance would take to the streets across the state over this issue.

Yadav said that on October 7, protest marches would be organized at the block level, while on October 8, Mahagathbandhan leaders and workers would hold demonstrations at district headquarters and March to the Raj Bhavan in Patna. The Patna march will begin from the Saptamurti statue opposite the Bihar Legislative Assembly, with MLAs, elected representatives and senior leaders of the alliance expected to participate.

Announcing the protest program, Tejashwi Yadav alleged that the Election Commission had not acted impartially and claimed that irregularities in the electoral process were coming to light.

He said the SIR exercise had originated in Bihar and alleged that the opposition had repeatedly raised concerns over the electoral process.

Tejashwi Yadav questions the fund transfer before the 2025 Bihar polls:

Yadav also questioned the transfer of Rs 10,000 into women’s bank accounts in Bihar before the elections, asking what the Election Commission was doing while the transfers were taking place.

He further alleged that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had been appointed with a specific political objective and claimed that the election process was being manipulated to benefit the ruling side.

These allegations are part of the opposition’s political criticism of the Election Commission and have not been established by a court.

Tejashwi Yadav also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of being responsible for what he described as electoral manipulation.

He said Bihar was the mother of democracy and asserted that the Mahagathbandhan, which he said believed in the Constitution and democratic values, would not allow what it described as an attack on democracy.

Opposition MPs to March in Delhi on October 6:

Tejashwi Yadav said opposition MPs would hold a protest march in Delhi on October 6, after which opposition leaders were scheduled to meet the President.

Tejashwi Yadav said agitation would subsequently be taken forward in Bihar under the banner of the Mahagathbandhan, beginning with block-level protest on October 7 and district-level demonstration on October 8.

The INDIA bloc has been demanding action against CEC Gyanesh Kumar over allegations concerning the functioning of the Election Commission during the SIR exercise.

The Mahagathbandhan’s announcement came on the day the Supreme Court heard petitions challenging the functioning of the Election Commission and seeking action against Gyanesh Kumar.

The petition referred to allegations that 14 decisions relating to the SIR process were taken without the concurrence of the other two Election Commissioners.

The Supreme Court did not grant an interim order suspending the CEC but issued notices to the Centre, the Election Commission and other respondents.

The court indicated that decisions could be reconsidered or set aside if the records showed that they were taken in violation of the applicable law.

During the hearing, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant also clarified that the Supreme Court had not approved any modification to Form 6.

The court said it wanted to examine the records to determine who had made the changes.

The clarification came after the Election Commission had said in a September 26 statement that the declaration attached to Form 6 for the SIR exercise had been upheld by the Supreme Court.

The court’s observation has added another dimension to the ongoing dispute over the electoral roll revision process.

The Mahagathbandhan is now preparing to take its opposition to the SIR and the Election Commission’s functioning to the streets, with protests planned across Bihar on October 7 and 8.

Also Read: Tejashwi Yadav targets the Bihar government over flood relief, drought and farmer compensation.

EOM.