Karnataka HC stays probe against BJP leader accused of filing fake voter deletion forms

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday, October 13, stayed further investigation into an FIR against BJP leader Ravi Patil and others over alleged voter deletions. The case concerns allegations that they submitted fabricated Form 7 applications to remove Muslim voters from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

According to a report by LiveLaw, Justice Venkatesh Naik T passed the order, citing a similar case in which another High Court bench had stayed an investigation because electoral authorities had not yet adjudicated the objections seeking deletion of voters’ names.

The court said the factual circumstances in the two cases were similar and that, to maintain judicial discipline, it was appropriate to stay the investigation until the next hearing. It permitted the state government to seek modification of the order if necessary. The matter will be heard next on October 29.

Senior advocate Aruna Shyam, appearing for Ravi, argued that the FIR had been initiated at the behest of rival political parties and that a parallel police investigation was not legally permissible. He submitted that the Election Commission had permitted bulk Form 7 objections and that the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) should first adjudicate them. Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, could be invoked if doubts remained after that process, he argued.

The court was also told that a coordinate bench in Bengaluru had last week stayed investigations in similar cases involving BJP booth-level agents G S Vasanthalakshmi and Deepak Singh R. That bench had observed that the complaints appeared premature because the competent electoral authority had not decided on the Form 7 applications.

According to the prosecution, a Congress block-level agent had accused Ravi and others of submitting around 198 fabricated Form 7 applications to a Booth Level Officer attached to the election section of the Belagavi Mahanagar Palike. The complaint alleged that the applications were intended to remove Muslim voters from the electoral rolls, even though the voters continued to reside at the addresses listed.

The Market Police Station in Belagavi registered an FIR and Ravi was booked under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including those relating to cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy.

The High Court’s order follows an earlier decision by a Belagavi Sessions Court granting Ravi anticipatory bail in the same case. The Sessions Court had noted that filing a Form 7 application did not automatically lead to the deletion of a voter’s name, as electoral authorities were required to verify the objections.