The Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer has served show-cause notices to 35 Booth Level Officers (BLO) for allegedly violating Election Commission guidelines during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, even as the state reported that over 86% of enumeration forms have been distributed to electors.
Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukkumar said the notices were issued following complaints that some BLOs had distributed enumeration forms in groups instead of carrying out the mandatory house-to-house verification directed by the Election Commission of India. He added that no complaints of this nature had been received after July 1.
According to the CEO's daily status report released on July 9, enumeration forms have been distributed to 4,78,47,260 electors—86.32% of the state's 5,54,32,314 registered voters. The house-to-house verification and digitisation exercise, which began on June 30, will continue until July 29.
So far, 74,80,396 forms (13.49%) have been digitised. While 26,668 polling stations (45.16%) have completed 100% distribution of forms and 14,013 polling stations have crossed the 90% mark, digitisation remains at an early stage, with only six polling stations reporting complete digitisation and 150 crossing 90%.
The CEO's office said 1,86,321 electors have submitted their enumeration forms online, accounting for 0.34% of the electorate. The data also shows that 2,20,549 electors have been marked under the "Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate or Others" (ASDDO) category, including 1,13,697 who have permanently shifted, 85,088 reported as deceased, 14,370 already enrolled elsewhere, 6,544 who were untraceable or absent, and 850 classified under other categories.
However, data released separately by the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) shows the exercise is progressing at a much slower pace in the city than the statewide average. As of 6 pm on July 9, only 57,29,823 enumeration forms had been distributed across Bengaluru, covering 55.16% of the city's electorate. Distribution stood at 57.57% in Bengaluru Central, 58.69% in Bengaluru North, and 52.25% in Bengaluru South.
Senior journalist and activist Shivsundar questioned the Election Commission's overall figures, arguing that they obscure significant regional disparities. "The Election Commission says over 86% of forms have been distributed, but that masks significant variations. Rural areas may have higher coverage, but in Bengaluru several constituencies are lagging because most households are locked during the day. The overall percentage does not reflect these urban realities," he said.
Shivsundar also questioned the one-month timeline for the exercise, saying it places immense pressure on BLOs, who are expected to make repeated house visits, verify electoral records, collect completed forms and digitise the data within the stipulated period.
Concerns over workload have intensified after three government employees died while engaged in SIR-related duties in Karnataka.
In Bengaluru South, a BLO identified as Nataraj died of a heart attack on July 6. His family alleged that he had been working late nights to meet SIR targets and did not wake up after going to bed following duty.
In Bidar’s Amalapur village, 45-year-old BLO Sunil collapsed while conducting SIR survey work after complaining of chest pain on JUly 5. Despite being rushed to hospital, he died. Colleagues said he had been working continuously for several days. A case has been registered at Gandhiganj police station.
Earlier, 26-year-old Village Administrative Officer (VAO) Bhavana died on July 4, in a road accident in Tumakuru’s Gooluru panchayat while travelling for SIR duty. Revenue department staff alleged that she was rushing early in the morning due to work pressure.
Employee unions have alleged that excessive workload, strict targets and pressure from superiors are affecting the physical and mental health of staff involved in the exercise. Following Bhavana’s death, revenue staff staged a protest outside the Tumakuru Deputy Commissioner’s office, demanding workload reduction, safety measures, and an inquiry into officials’ conduct.
Election officials have not yet issued a detailed response to the allegations.
Addressing concerns raised by political parties and citizens, Anbukkumar on July 8 said District Election Officers (DEO), Electoral Registration Officers (ERO), and district administrations have been instructed to examine grievances and resolve them promptly. He said the revision exercise was progressing as scheduled and expressed confidence that it would be completed by the July 29 deadline.
On voters unable to trace their 2002 electoral records, Anbukkumar said they could leave the relevant column blank and seek assistance from BLOs, voter facilitation centres, or the online portal. He also clarified that forms could be filled in any language and that corrections to uploaded details could be made through BLOs until July 29.
The CEO also mentioned the role of Booth Level Agents (BLAs), saying they may collect forms on behalf of BLOs but can submit a maximum of 50 forms until the publication of the draft electoral rolls on August 5. After that date, the limit will be reduced to 10 forms, and BLAs will have to submit an undertaking while handing over the forms to BLOs.