More than 4,000 Form 7 applications seeking deletion of voters from Karnataka’s electoral rolls have been filed across several Assembly constituencies during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR), with a large number of the targeted voters identified as Muslims, according to election data reviewed by The Hindu.
The bulk objections have been reported in both Congress and BJP represented constituencies. Officials have said the applications will be scrutinised before any eligible voter is removed from the rolls.
Form 7 is used to object to the inclusion of a person’s name in the electoral roll, including on grounds such as being absent or having permanently shifted.
Over 1,300 applications in Babaleshwar
In Babaleshwar Assembly constituency in Vijayapura district, 1,373 Form 7 applications were received on September 22 alone. Of these, 1,363 were filed by just 10 people, with most of the objections reportedly targeting Muslim voters outside the applicants’ own polling stations.
One elector, Huchappa Ganiger, filed 493 applications between September 22 and 23. Another elector, Govindaraj Mundur, filed 413 applications on September 23 across 33 polling stations.
The constituency is represented by Congress Minister M B Patil.
Similar pattern reported in Bhalki
A similar pattern was reported in Bhalki in Bidar district, represented by Congress Minister Eshwar Khandre.
At least 30 people filed objections seeking deletion of more than 1,700 names on September 23. One elector, identified as Santosh, filed 120 applications that day after submitting another 54 the previous day.
Further applications were also filed in Bhalki after September 23. The News Minute reported that 525 additional objections were submitted on September 24, with 20 people filing all but two of them. Most of the targeted voters were reportedly Muslims.
Bulk objections also in BJP seats
The pattern has also emerged in constituencies represented by BJP legislators.
In Basavakalyan, one elector named Siddappa filed 32 of the 37 Form 7 applications received on a single day. The objections were against Muslim voters in a single polling station.
In Belthangady in Dakshina Kannada, elector Umesh Bangera filed 21 applications, again targeting Muslim voters at one polling station. Both constituencies are represented by BJP MLAs.
The reason cited in these applications was generally “Absent/Permanently Shifted.”
Questions over how forms were prepared
Some of the applications have also raised questions about their preparation.
In two cases examined in Bhalki, the details of the people seeking deletion were already printed on the forms, while the objectors’ details were handwritten.
In one instance, several applications named an elector, Vishnuvardhan Kote, as the objector. However, when contacted, the person reportedly said he was not Vishnuvardhan and identified himself as Suresh. The EPIC details on the forms were linked to an elector named Vishnuvardhan.
Officials in Bidar said some applications had been filed offline and might not yet have been digitised, which could explain discrepancies between physical forms and the online data.
Officials say eligible voters will be protected
Bulk Form 7 applications began appearing in significant numbers around September 22, shortly before the deadline for claims and objections.
Officials in Bidar and Vijayapura told The Hindu that every objection would be scrutinised before action was taken to ensure that no eligible voter was removed.
They also said people who filed objections in bulk had been warned that submitting claims without valid grounds could attract punishment if the allegations were found to be false.
The developments come amid wider concerns over the SIR exercise in Karnataka. Earlier, discrepancies were reported between the number of Form 7 applications shown in different sets of election data, with the Chief Electoral Officer saying the issue would be examined.
No eligible voter’s name has been established as having been illegally deleted solely on the basis of the bulk objections described above. The applications remain subject to scrutiny by election authorities.
