BJP’s Sanjay Jaiswal Hits Back At Tejashwi Yadav Over 'Sootra' Remark, Calls Him ‘Uneducated’, Seeks Apology

Bihar Polls 2025: Reacting strongly to Tejashwi Yadav’s dismissal of reports about foreign nationals being found on the voter list, Jaiswal accused the RJD leader of being "uneducated and irresponsible."

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav (L) and BJP leader Sanjay Jaiswal (R) (File Photos)

New Delhi: The controversy surrounding the presence of alleged foreign nationals in Bihar’s electoral rolls has escalated into a bitter political clash, with BJP leader Sanjay Jaiswal launching a scathing attack on RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav. The issue emerged amid the Election Commission’s ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which has now become a flashpoint between the ruling and opposition parties in the state.

Reacting strongly to Tejashwi Yadav’s dismissal of reports about foreign nationals being found on the voter list, Jaiswal accused the RJD leader of being "uneducated and irresponsible."

“Only Tejashwi Yadav can make such comments about media personnel or any human being in general,” Jaiswal told ANI. “The problem with Tejashwi Yadav is that he is not educated, which is why the people at his home make him memorise whatever they want, and he just repeats it. But if someone asks him a question outside of that, he will create this kind of mess.”

Demanding a public apology, Jaiswal further said, “Tejashwi Yadav should publicly apologise, express regret, and take an oath that he will not say anything beyond what he is taught at home.”

#WATCH | Bettiah, Bihar: On the statement of Bihar Legislative Assembly LoP & RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, BJP leader Sanjay Jaiswal says, "...Only Tejashwi Yadav can make such comments about media personnel or any human being in general. The problem with Tejashwi Yadav is that he… pic.twitter.com/5Et1YHLiHb — ANI (@ANI) July 13, 2025

The verbal duel intensified after Tejashwi ridiculed reports that Bangladeshi, Nepali, and even Myanmar nationals were listed as voters in Bihar.

"Who are these sources?" Tejashwi asked, mocking the authenticity of the claims. “These are the same sources that said Islamabad, Karachi, and Lahore have been captured.”

He further added sarcastically, “Ye sootra ko hum mootra samajhte hai.”

… pic.twitter.com/ACwApxQwVr — Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) July 13, 2025

Tejashwi also raised questions about the timing and motivation behind the SIR exercise. “SIR was conducted for the last time in 2003 under the UPA government. Since then, we have seen many elections, including the ones in 2014, 2019, and 2024. In those elections, we lost by three to four lakhs. Does that mean all these foreigners voted for PM Modi? This means that the NDA are at fault for any dubious elements' names getting added to the voter lists.”

Accusing the process of being politically driven, he said, “That means all the elections they have won have been a fraud... SIR is a complete eyewash. The EC is working as a cell of a political party.”

Earlier, a report by news agency IANS quoted Election Commission officials as saying that their field-level teams had identified a “large number” of suspected foreign nationals, mainly from Nepal, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, during the ongoing voter list verification.

With Bihar heading into assembly elections later this year, the controversy over the SIR drive and its findings has assumed significant political importance. The process, aimed at cleaning up the electoral rolls, may also influence a broader national conversation on voter roll verification, particularly with an emphasis on individuals’ place of birth.