Bengaluru: An FIR has been registered against two alleged BJP booth-level agents and others in connection with Form 7 applications seeking the deletion of 5,698 voters from the electoral roll in Bengaluru’s Jayanagar Assembly constituency.
The FIR was registered by Jayanagar police on October 5 following a complaint by former Jayanagar MLA and Karnataka Pradesh Mahila Congress president Sowmya Reddy. The complaint alleges that fraudulent Form 7 applications were submitted during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The case has emerged amid a wider political dispute in Karnataka over bulk Form 7 applications, with the Congress alleging attempts to remove eligible voters from electoral rolls and the BJP and JD(S) questioning the filing of criminal cases against people who submit objections.
The allegations in the Jayanagar case are under investigation and the FIR does not by itself establish that the accused committed the alleged offences.
FIR names two alleged BJP booth-level agents
The FIR names Ramakrishna and Yogesh, described in the complaint as booth-level agents affiliated with the BJP, along with others.
According to the complaint, Form 7 applications were submitted seeking the deletion of 5,698 voters from the Jayanagar constituency. The applications allegedly stated that the voters had permanently shifted from their registered addresses.
Form 7 is an official mechanism through which an elector can object to the inclusion of a name in the electoral roll or seek deletion of an existing entry. However, filing such an application does not automatically result in deletion of a voter’s name.
Police have registered the case under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including provisions relating to common intention, conspiracy and alleged false or fraudulent documentation, according to reports on the FIR.
The police investigation will determine whether the applications were genuine objections, improperly submitted applications or part of a deliberate attempt to manipulate the electoral roll.
5,698 voters named in Jayanagar applications
The complaint contains ward-wise details of the applications.
The largest number was reported from Ward 171 in Guruppanapalya, involving 4,327 voters. Other applications were reported from different wards within the constituency.
According to the complaint, 719 voters were covered in Ward 170 in Jayanagar East and 525 in Ward 169 in Byrasandra. Another 82 voters were listed across Wards 177, 178 and 179 covering JP Nagar, Sarakki and Shakambari Nagar, while 54 voters were reported from Ward 168 in Pattabhiram Nagar.
The complaint also alleges that identity details of some residents were obtained without their knowledge and used in Form 7 applications. It further alleges that some applications contained forged signatures.
These claims are part of the complaint and will have to be verified during the investigation.
CEO says Form 7 does not automatically delete names
The Jayanagar FIR comes as the Karnataka election authorities have sought to clarify how the SIR process works.
Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukumar said on October 5 that no voter had been deleted merely because a Form 7 objection had been filed.
He said the concerned Electoral Registration Officer must issue notices to both the objector and the voter, conduct a hearing and verify relevant documents before deciding whether a name should be removed.
The clarification is significant because the political dispute has centred partly on claims that large numbers of voters were being removed through Form 7 applications.
According to the CEO’s office, more than 43.5 lakh notices had been delivered to electors during the SIR exercise by October 5. The notices were issued to voters falling under categories such as “No Mapping” and “Anomalies”.
The election authorities said 43,82,313 notices had been generated, of which 43,55,818 had been delivered. Hearings had been completed in about 36.89 lakh cases, while the remaining cases were still being processed.
Karnataka receives more than 91,000 Form 7 applications
The scale of the Form 7 issue extends beyond Jayanagar.
The Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer’s office said 91,278 Form 7 applications were received between June 16 and October 4 during the SIR exercise.
Bidar recorded the highest number at 5,953, followed by Shivamogga with 5,936 and Dakshina Kannada with 5,534 applications.
The CEO has said there is no legal definition of a “bulk” Form 7 application. However, election rules prescribe limits on how many applications can be submitted by an individual or booth-level agent.
An individual or BLA can submit up to 10 Form 7 applications in a day and up to 50 during the SIR exercise, according to the CEO’s explanation. Applications beyond the prescribed limits can be examined by the Electoral Registration Officer.
The authorities have also directed election officials to examine allegations involving knowingly false declarations.
Similar voter deletion case reported in Malleswaram
The Jayanagar case is not the first FIR in Bengaluru linked to alleged irregularities involving Form 7 applications.
Earlier, Malleswaram police registered a case concerning applications seeking the deletion of 778 voters from the electoral roll.
The FIR related to Polling Station No. 157 and covered applications across eight polling parts. A BJP member was named as an accused in that case, while another person allegedly associated with an RSS wing was listed as an unidentified accused. The allegations remain subject to investigation.
Police cases have also been reported from other parts of Karnataka, including Bhalki, Bableshwar, Belagavi Uttar and Ballari, amid allegations of fraudulent or improper Form 7 submissions.
The series of cases has increased scrutiny of the SIR process and the role of political workers in submitting objections.
BJP and JD(S) question FIRs
The opposition BJP and JD(S) have defended the use of Form 7 and questioned what they describe as unwarranted criminal cases against their workers.
NDA leaders recently met Karnataka’s Chief Electoral Officer and sought protection for people submitting legitimate objections. They argued that Form 7 is a statutory mechanism and that submitting multiple objections should not automatically be treated as a criminal offence.
The BJP has also alleged that police action against its workers amounts to political interference in the SIR process.
The ruling Congress, meanwhile, has raised concerns over alleged attempts to remove eligible voters and has demanded investigation into suspected fraudulent applications.
The competing claims have turned the electoral-roll revision exercise into a significant political issue in Karnataka.
Final electoral roll due later in October
The SIR process is continuing across Karnataka.
According to the CEO’s office, the final hearings in the current stage are scheduled to be completed by October 12, while October 22 is the last date for disposal of claims and objections. The final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on October 27.
The election authorities have emphasised that a Form 7 application is only an objection or request and does not itself result in removal from the electoral roll.
For voters who believe their names have been wrongly omitted or affected during the revision process, the election authorities have also indicated that the electoral roll remains subject to continuous updating.
Investigation to establish whether applications were fraudulent
The Jayanagar FIR has now shifted the issue from political allegations to a formal police investigation.
Investigators will have to establish who prepared and submitted the disputed applications, whether the voters named in them had actually shifted from their registered addresses and whether any identities or signatures were used without consent.
The investigation will also determine whether the alleged BJP-linked booth-level agents and others named in the complaint were responsible for the disputed applications.
Until the investigation is completed and any subsequent court proceedings establish liability, the allegations against the accused remain unproven.
Conclusion
The Jayanagar FIR concerns allegations that Form 7 applications were fraudulently submitted seeking the deletion of 5,698 voters from the electoral roll. Police have named two alleged BJP booth-level agents and others in the case.
The development comes amid a wider Karnataka dispute over bulk Form 7 applications during the SIR exercise. Election authorities have clarified that filing Form 7 does not automatically remove a voter’s name and that notices, hearings and verification are required before any deletion decision.