Bengaluru: FIR against BJP agents for trying to delete 5,698 voters

Bengaluru Police lodged an FIR against two BJP Booth Level Agents and others for allegedly trying to delete 5,698 voters in the Jayanagar constituency. The complaint by Congress leader Sowmya Reddy accuses them of submitting fraudulent Form-7s.

Bengaluru Police have registered an FIR against two BJP Booth Level Agents (BLAs) and others for allegedly submitting fraudulent Form-7 applications to delete 5,698 voters from the Jayanagar Assembly constituency. The case was filed on Monday night at Jayanagar police station on a complaint by Karnataka Mahila Congress President Sowmya Reddy.

According to the FIR, the malpractice occurred between June 16 and October 5 during the summary revision of rolls. Reddy alleged BJP BLAs Ramakrishna and Yogesh, along with others, filed Form-7s falsely claiming voters had shifted, targeting minority communities and voters seen as unfavourable to the BJP. The complaint states the accused misused the identity details of residents Ramesh and his wife Roopa to file objections without consent, and submitted applications with forged signatures to BLO Lokesh at Jayanagar 4th Block. Police have booked them under Sections 61(2)(b), 217(b), 319(2), 336(2), 340(2) r/w 3(5) of BNS, 2023, and investigation is underway.

CM Shivakumar Stages Protest, Demands Probe

Earlier, on October 1, Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, accompanied by six Cabinet ministers, staged a protest outside the office of Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukkumar. Shivakumar and the ministers also met Anbukkumar and demanded immediate registration of an FIR and a time-bound criminal investigation into the alleged bulk submission of fraudulent Form 7 objections during the ongoing SIR process. The Karnataka government has alleged mass deletion of voters during the electoral-roll revision and sought action over the alleged irregularities.

Kumaraswamy Calls Protest a 'Political Farce'

Meanwhile, Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy also criticised the protest, alleging that the Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues had cancelled the day's Cabinet meeting and launched a "political farce". He claimed that concerns over alleged irregularities in the SIR process had been raised earlier as well and questioned why the Karnataka government had remained silent at that time.

Kumaraswamy said, "The Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues have cancelled today's cabinet meeting and started a political farce. Today they met the State Election Commissioner and alleged that injustice has happened in the SIR process, that BJP workers have committed irregularities and stolen votes, and they themselves are sitting on a dharna demanding that people be arrested immediately and FIRs be filed. We ourselves had complained in the initial stage that in many taluk centres, in choultries and in houses, people were gathering in groups and committing irregularities in the SIR process. Why were you silent at that time? Where had you gone? Now you are saying irregularities have happened. He alleged that the protest was being held at the direction of leaders from Delhi and accused the state government of using the SIR issue to divert public attention from other alleged irregularities in Karnataka. (ANI)

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