B'luru: Did the Congress delegation reveal 'election fraud' to the EC?

Bengaluru, August 8 (NationPress) A group of Congress leaders, headed by D.K. Shivakumar, the party's Karnataka unit President and Deputy Chief Minister, lodged a formal complaint at the Karnataka State Election Commission office regarding alleged electoral fraud occurring in Mahadevapura and various other constituencies.

In response, the Chief Electoral Officer's office of Karnataka instructed the Congress party to present relevant documents concerning the complaint along with a declaration/oath according to Rule 20(3)(b) of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, to facilitate action on the matter.

In a significant turn of events concerning the fraud allegations, Karnataka's Chief Electoral Officer, V. Anbukumar, requested a signed declaration from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi regarding the issue. This declaration emphasizes that providing false information can lead to legal repercussions.

The delegation was comprised of KPCC Working President and Rajya Sabha member G.C. Chandrashekhar, BDA Chairman and MLA N.A. Haris, and MLC Basanagouda Badarli.

Shivakumar stated to the media: “We have requested the Election Commission to perform a comprehensive verification of the electoral rolls statewide.”

When questioned about the Election Commission's request for an affidavit from Rahul Gandhi, Shivakumar replied: “What affidavit do they require? Both Rahul Gandhi and I are living affidavits. We have already submitted affidavits after contesting and winning elections. What else do they seek? If we are dishonest, punish us. Did the Commission refute Rahul Gandhi's claims? Their demand for an affidavit seems like a tactic to stall the process. The data we possess was obtained through RTI.”

When asked about when the Congress would provide complete details, he stated, “We have sought some data from the Commission. They must supply it first.”

He continued: “Under the guidance of our leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, we organized this protest to combat injustice and safeguard voting rights. Considering court orders, we opted not to march to the Election Commission office and only sent a limited number of party leaders. Rahul Gandhi has already clarified how electoral injustice occurred, and we believe this is a statewide issue. Our representation highlighted five to six areas, and we called upon the Election Commission to verify voter rolls statewide.”

He clarified: “We haven't submitted the Mahadevapura and Gandhinagar models to the Election Commission. What Rahul Gandhi discussed in the press conference was merely an illustration. Similar irregularities have transpired across multiple regions in the state, and we demand a thorough verification. We urged the Commission to take stringent action against any officials, including returning officers or BLOs, involved in these irregularities.”

“We presented a proposal detailing 8–10 irregularities such as duplicate voter entries in five locations, names added without proper addresses, and unlawful shifts of voter names to nearby booths. We also requested digital formats of the electoral roll and specific data, but the full details have yet to be submitted,” he remarked.

“We have been informed that V. Anbukumar, the newly appointed Chief Electoral Officer, has initiated a verification process. This is a positive development. We will furnish details regarding where injustices have occurred and what subsequent actions should be taken. This is not merely a battle confined to Karnataka or Mahadevapura,” he concluded.

“Some may ask, ‘Isn’t it your own government and your own officials?’ But the entire oversight is under the Election Commission’s jurisdiction. If my name is entered into the system, it should indicate where all my votes are registered. The Election Commission officials must at least ensure this verification occurs. This matter requires nationwide discourse. We have initiated our protest with this objective and will persist in the forthcoming days,” Shivakumar added.

In response to criticisms from BJP leaders, he said, “We do not engage with statements from BJP leaders. Our struggle is against the Election Commission, not any political party. The Commission must not function as a representative of a single party.”