3 FIRs over bulk Form-7s in Karnataka, CM demands ECI probe

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Karnataka’s Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar with Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, and other Congress leaders. | Photo Credit: File photo

Karnataka’s Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar has demanded a ‘thorough inquiry’ by the Election Commission of India (ECI) into what he alleged was ‘BJP workers’ filing Form-7s in bulk seeking deletion of names of people who have made it to the draft voter rolls during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

The Karnataka Police have filed three FIRs — two in Belagavi and one in Bhalki — over submission of Form-7s in bulk.

Sources said that more FIRs are likely to be filed. 

Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru with seven of his cabinet colleagues on October 1 afternoon, he announced that he will lead a delegation to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Karnataka shortly to lodge a complaint, and will not leave the premises till a probe is ordered. 

“Voters whose names were sought to be deleted have filed complaints and police will take action. I will not interfere. We will conduct a thorough probe and arrest all those behind this criminal conspiracy. But it is the duty of the ECI to conduct a probe and register FIRs in all constituencies where they have received such Form-7s in bulk,” Mr. Shivakumar said. 

“This is a criminal conspiracy to rob people of their votes, and targeting of minority communities, scheduled castes, tribes, other backward classes, and people from the slums. This is very similar to the Aland voter fraud case. I am duty bound to protect every voter of Karnataka irrespective of their party affiliation, gender, caste, creed, and religion. If I fail to do so, I don’t deserve to sit in this chair,” said the Chief Minister who was visibly emotional. 

“Most of these Form-7s are pre-printed with the details of the voters whose names were sought to be deleted, with only names of the objectors to be filled by hand. Who printed these forms? Where were they printed,” the Chief Minister questioned. 

He alleged that they had information that the agency given the contract to handle voter data was linked to the BJP, and the data leak of voters may have been happening from the agency. He demanded a thorough audit and probe of the agency. 

“In Belagavi, 198 Form-7s were filed in the name of one BJP worker, Shashikanth Jadhav. But he denied filing those applications, and insisted that the signature on the form was not his. This only means that many of these bulk Form-7s are forged, just like in Aland,” Mr. Shivakumar said. 

“In Belagavi and Vijayapura districts, BJP workers who filed Form-7s in bulk withdrew the applications after being warned of punitive action if the information was found to be false. They have given in writing that they are from the BJP, and filing these forms was a mistake. A crime is not negated if they apologise,” Mr. Shivakumar said. 

“In Vijayapura city, seven BJP workers filed Form-7s in bulk to delete over 13,000 voters, mostly Muslims, in two days. After being warned of action if the grounds cited for their deletion in the forms were found to be false, they withdrew the applications, and gave it in writing. The victory margin in this constituency in 2023 was around 6,000 votes. So, deletion of 13,000 voters can change the result of the election,” said M. B. Patil, the Minister of Large and Medium Scale Industries who is from Vijayapura district. 

BJP State unit President B. Y. Vijayendra said the party has every right to flag voters it had reasons to suspect were added to the draft voter list illegally. “In the beginning, Muslim voters were pooled together in masjids and kalyana mantaps, officers also called to the spot, and voters were added to the list. There is a suspicion that illegal Bangladeshi immigrants have made it to the voter list in some constituencies. We have flagged them. The ECI will verify these applications, and reject them if found to be false. What is the crime in this,” he asked, adding that BJP leaders wouldn’t be threatened by FIRs and will not backtrack.

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