Attempts to mass-delete voters, mostly Muslims, from the draft electoral rolls during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) have emerged from at least two constituencies in Karnataka. These applications for the deletion of names were made in the 48 hours before the deadline to file claims and objections closed on September 24. It is not mandatory that a person whose inclusion on the rolls is disputed is given a hearing to present their case. A designated officer, if satisfied, can simply strike off a name.
Applications for deletions of over 3,750 people, mostly Muslims and a smaller number of people of a Scheduled Caste, were filed on just two days, September 22 and 23, by a small number of people in two assembly constituencies.
The applications were filed in Babaleshwar constituency in Vijayapura district represented by minister MB Patil and in Bhalki constituency in Bidar district represented by minister Eshwar Khandre.
Form 7 objections
The period for filing claims (inclusion in the electoral rolls or correction of information on voter ID card) and objections (removal of names from the electoral rolls) was between August 24 and September 24. The ECI will dispose of claims and objections until October 22 and the final electoral roll will be published on October 27.
Form 7 is submitted to object to the inclusion of someone’s name on the electoral rolls. You could use Form 7 if you have shifted from one place to another, or want the name of a deceased relative removed from the rolls. But the law allows any person to object to the inclusion of an unrelated person as well.
The Registration of Electors Rules 1960 lays down the procedure to be followed for claims and objections. Section 18 allows designated officers to either accept or reject Form 7 without inquiry, unless a demand for inquiry is made in writing to the officer before the Form 7 has been accepted. This means that an officer does have the power to simply strike a name off the rolls if s/he feels that the objections to someone’s inclusion are valid.
For instance, in Babaleshwar constituency, a man named Govindaraj Mudnur has objected to the inclusion of 413 people. The designated ECI officer has the discretion to accept Govindaraj’s submissions as valid, and simply strike off 413 people off the electoral rolls. The officer can also issue notice to Govindaraj and the people he has named in Form 7 and summon them both for a hearing to determine whether or not the person’s name should be deleted from the electoral roll.
A consolidated statement of the total number of Form 7 applications received on a single day, called Form 10, can be accessed on the Election Commission of India’s website here.
The Form 10 statements of Babaleshwar and Bhalki constituencies show that a total of 38 individuals filed objections to the inclusion of the names of a total of 3,757 people across several voting booths. 3,909 Form 7 applications were submitted on September 22 and 23. The five days before September 22 saw such applications in single digits at the most.
In Babaleshwar constituency, on September 22, seven individuals filed 96 % of the 1373 applications for deletions. The next day, September 23, six people had filed all of the 257 applications.
In Bhalki, on September 22, ten individuals filed 97% of the 384 applications for deletions. The next day, 31 people filed 95% of the 1,895 applications.
It is unclear yet who these individuals are. For this analysis TNM has not considered individuals who filed less than 10 applications.
From their names, it appears that the bulk of the names proposed to be deleted in the two constituencies were those of Muslims. People with Madar, a caste indicator, as a second name are also facing deletion. A handful of individuals also sought the deletion of their own or possibly relatives’ names.
Minister for Commerce and Industries MB Patil has represented Babaleshwar constituency in Vijayapura district for four terms since in 2008.
During the previous election, the constituency had 2,17,491 electors, and Patil won by a margin of 15,216 votes.
In the final 48 hours before the deadline closed, 1577 applications for voter deletions were filed in the constituency, on grounds that people they named were absent / permanently shifted, or had already been enrolled elsewhere. The objections were filed against Muslims and people who appear to belong to the Madar caste.
An activist with the Solidarity Youth Movement of India, Adil Tikota, told TNM that a complaint has been filed with the local Tahsildar and Election Commission of India officials.
He also told TNM on Thursday, September 24, that the issue had been resolved as one of the objectors had apologised and said that the objections would not be pursued.
Despite the man’s assurance that they would drop the matter, the same group of individuals filed 257 more Form 7 applications, seeking the deletion of mostly Muslims and people of the Madar caste.
An Election Commission of India official told TNM on condition of anonymity that there was no rule specifically allowing the withdrawal of Form 7, but claimed that they could be withdrawn informally.
Minister for Panchayati Raj and Rural Development Eshwar Khandre has represented Bhalki since 2008. During the previous election, Bhalki had 2,30,959 electors and Khandre won by a margin of 27,706.
A total of 31 individuals filed dozens of applications on September 22 and 23 seeking the removal of 2,180 names, almost entirely those of Muslims, from the existing electoral roll. These included 10 people who filed dozens of applications on both days.
Separately, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president BK Hariprasad has alleged that the names of Muslims were being deleted on a mass scale in Belagavi district. He alleged that BJP MLA Abhay Patil had written to the Belagavi City Corporation on September 19 claiming that 2,598 voters were ‘bogus’ and sought their deletion.
ECI officials have rejected Abhay Patil's demand for scrutiny and deletion of the votes in Belagavi North constituency.
Patil himself has since denied that he sought the deletion of the names. He said he asked the ECI to look into allegations of "bogus" voters.