Direct Women To Remove Burqa While Voting, Chhattisgarh BJP Leaders Demand

 Remove Burqa While Voting, Demands Chhattisgarh BJP: As the date for the urban body election in Chhattisgarh nears, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders have expressed worries over Muslim women wearing a burqa while going to vote. The leaders of the political party approached the State Election Commission on December 13, yesterday, citing concerns over fraud during the electoral process.

The elections for 15 urban bodies in the state of Chhattisgarh will take place on December 20. The nominations for the polls began on November 27. In a day, elections for four municipal corporations and seventeen wards will also be conducted. The polls are scheduled to be held through ballot papers and the results will be announced on December 23. The State Election Commission Thakur Ram Singh has imposed the code of conduct during polls in all the cities where the polls are scheduled to take place.

In 2019, the Congress party had won all ten municipal corporations that were up for grabs.

However, yesterday, the BJP leaders approached Singh with a memorandum, stating their objection to Muslim women wearing burqa while voting. This was submitted by Birgaon election-in-charge Ajay Chandrakar, BJP spokesperson and former minister Rajesh Munat, former MLA Devji Bhai Patel, Raipur District President Srichand Sundrani and OP Chaudhary.

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"If the burqa can be removed to make a voter card, then why not for voting," stated the BJP leaders. The leaders further expressed concerns over Abdul Rauf ward in the area. Calling it "sensitive" the leaders demanded police protection for campaigning party leaders in the area. The leaders also alleged that there are 452 fake voters with addresses of four houses at Abdul Rauf ward of Birgaon.

When the elections were announced, the opposition party in the state BJP's state president Vishnudeo Sai said that the party will show strength and winning the elections will be like "conquering" the congress.

Although this is not the first time BJP has raised this issue during elections. Ahead of the sixth and seventh phase of the Uttar Pradesh polls in 2017, the political party leaders had written to the Election Commission demanding women police officials at polling booths to check voter ids of women wearing the burqa. They had demanded for the same during the Assam polls in 2016.