Sringeri recount row: FIR filed against BJP winner D.N. Jeevaraj, 2 others

Karnataka Police on Monday registered a First Information Report (FIR) at the Chikkamagaluru Town Police Station against three individuals — including newly declared Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winner D.N. Jeevaraj — over alleged irregularities in the postal ballot recount of the Sringeri Assembly constituency. The case follows the completion of a court-mandated reverification process that overturned a 2023 Assembly election result, handing Jeevaraj a 52-vote victory margin.

Background: How the Recount Was Ordered

The Karnataka High Court had directed a reverification and recount of postal ballots in the Sringeri constituency tied to the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections. The process was completed and a report submitted to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday. Originally, Congress candidate T.D. Rajegowda had won the seat by a margin of 201 votes. However, during the recount, 318 of Rajegowda's earlier 569 postal votes were declared invalid, flipping the result in Jeevaraj's favour by 52 votes.

The FIR and Allegations

The complaint was filed on 3 May by advocate Sudheer Kumar Murolli, who served as an agent at a postal ballot counting table. He alleged suspected tampering of ballot papers during the counting process. Murolli claimed that the strongroom where the ballots were stored had not been properly sealed, and that the trunk containing the ballot papers was found open — with its seal allegedly broken and the lock cut, raising suspicions of tampering.

Based on this complaint, police registered a case against three accused: Vedamurthy, the then Election Officer (accused number one); D.N. Jeevaraj, the then BJP candidate (accused number two); and Ramesh Kumar, the then Deputy Commissioner (accused number three). The FIR has been filed under Sections 143, 465, 468, 471, 120B and 149 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 136 of the Representation of People Act, 1951 and 1988, covering charges including cheating, forgery, and criminal conspiracy. Police said further investigation is underway.