FIR Against BJP Leader Over Attempt to Seek Deletion of 7,561 Voters in Ballari
Congress BLA alleges bulk Form 7 objections targeted minority voters during SIR, while BJP leader says he only sought verification
Ballari: An FIR has been registered against BJP leader and Ballari City Corporation Opposition Leader T Srinivas Motkur over an alleged attempt to seek the deletion of 7,561 voters from the electoral roll during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Karnataka.
The case was registered at Brucepet Police Station on October 1 following a complaint filed by Congress Booth Level Agent Goutham S. Srinivas Motkur is also the BJP’s BLA 1 in the constituency. Three election officials have also been named in the case.
According to the complaint, Srinivas initially claimed that the 7,561 voters were either absent, had shifted their residence or were registered elsewhere. Election authorities reportedly refused to accept the requests initially because they were not supported by documents or other evidence.
Srinivas subsequently submitted a list of the 7,561 voters and sought to raise objections through Form 7. He later approached the Electoral Registration Officer after some Booth Level Officers reportedly declined to accept the applications.
Election officials informed him that bulk submissions were subject to specific verification requirements. According to the reported procedure, applications submitted in large numbers had to be individually verified and accompanied by a declaration confirming that the details had been personally checked.
The complaint further alleges that around 98.08 per cent of the voters included in the list belonged to minority communities. The complainant alleged that the exercise amounted to an attempt to remove minority voters from the electoral roll. This allegation is part of the complaint and has not been established by the investigation.
Srinivas, however, has disputed the allegations. He said he was seeking verification of a list provided to him and did not directly demand the removal of voters without verification.
The case has been registered under Section 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which relates to statements conducing to public mischief. The investigation is underway.
The Ballari case is the sixth FIR registered in Karnataka in connection with alleged misuse of Form 7 during the SIR exercise. The controversy has led to demands from the BJP for a review of criminal cases filed against its workers, while election authorities have said action will be taken against those found to have knowingly submitted false claims.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukkumar has clarified that no voter has been removed from the electoral roll merely because a Form 7 objection was filed. He said objections would have to undergo the prescribed verification and hearing process before any deletion could take place.