Bengaluru: 5,698 Form 7 applications in Jayanagar, Congress’ Sowmya Reddy seeks probe

Former Jayanagar MLA and Karnataka Pradesh Mahila Congress president Sowmya Reddy has filed a complaint with the Jayanagar police alleging irregularities. She said that 5,698 Form 7 applications seeking deletion of names from voter rolls had been submitted across the Jayanagar Assembly constituency.

In her complaint dated October 5, Sowmya also alleged that more than 4,327 voters had been removed from the electoral roll in Ward 171 (Gurrappanapalya) alone. 

Form 7 is used to seek deletion of a name from the electoral roll.

She alleged that the deletion applications were submitted at the request of a person named Lokesh, whom she said was working for BJP leader and Jayanagar MLA C K Ramamurthy. She also alleged that another person, Yogesh, who she said had worked with Ramamurthy, was involved in “false/irregular voting”.

According to the complaint, former Gurrappanapalya corporator Rizwan Nawab and the concerned Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were present when the alleged irregularities came to light.

Sowmya said an inquiry into the matter had already been conducted by Jayanagar Returning Officer Eshwar Naidu and Assistant Returning Officer Rekha. She added that the relevant Form 7 applications and voter lists were available at the Returning Officer’s office in Jayanagar.

She also said that she has video footage and photographs supporting the allegations and said these could be submitted to the police for verification.

She has sought verification of the electoral records, examination of the inquiry findings and available evidence, and appropriate legal action if any violations are established.

The complaint comes amid several cases being registered in Karnataka over the alleged misuse of Form 7 during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Six FIRs have been registered in the state in connection with alleged misuse of the form. Of the previous five cases, three — two in Belagavi and one in Mysuru — named BJP members as accused.

The Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer recently directed election officials to initiate action against applicants who knowingly make false claims or objections through electoral forms.

Meanwhile, the BJP has opposed the registration of criminal cases against its workers over Form 7 submissions. Senior BJP leaders, including former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, state president B Y Vijayendra and Leader of Opposition R Ashoka, met Director General and Inspector General of Police M A Saleem on Saturday and sought a review of FIRs related to the electoral-roll exercise.