Karnataka mulls SIT probe into mass Form 7 voter deletion applications

The Karnataka government is actively considering the formation of a Special Investigation Team to investigate allegations of large-scale electoral roll manipulation involving bulk Form 7 applications. The development comes in the wake of mounting political friction between the ruling administration and opposition parties over objections filed during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Official sources indicated that state authorities are examining the feasibility of a centralized criminal investigation to determine if mass deletion requests lodged across multiple districts form part of a coordinated conspiracy.

The controversy centres around Form 7, a statutory document utilized under electoral rules to raise objections or seek the deletion of specific names from voter lists. State election data shows that Karnataka received 91,278 such applications during the revision cycle. Senior state ministers and party legislators previously staged demonstrations outside the office of the Chief Electoral Officer, alleging that pre-filled forms were systematically deployed to target minority communities, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes for unauthorized removal.

Police across several jurisdictions have already registered multiple First Information Reports following individual complaints regarding disputed deletion requests. Cases have been filed in districts including Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, Ballari, Bengaluru, Bidar, Belagavi, Chikkamagaluru, Mysuru, Vijayapura, and Udupi. Complainants in Mangaluru and Kodagu alleged that applications submitted under Form 7 contained false information concerning voters who continue to reside at their registered addresses.

Legal experts and administrative advisors have pointed out potential technical complexities regarding how the police investigations intersect with the Representation of the People Act. Under statutory provisions, penal action for false declarations during electoral roll revisions typically requires formal complaints initiated directly by election officials. The state administration is reviewing whether an overarching investigative team would possess the required mandate to examine parallel criminal conspiracies alongside the ongoing administrative scrutiny by the poll body.

State Chief Electoral Officer V. Anbukkumar stated that election authorities have processed thousands of filings but confirmed that no voter names have been deleted from the rolls so far. Every Form 7 application mandates standard procedural safeguards, including formal notices issued to both the objector and the targeted voter, followed by a mandatory hearing conducted by the Electoral Registration Officer. Officials reiterated that objections cannot result in arbitrary deletions without exhaustive document verification and adherence to statutory inquiry rules.

Home Minister Priyank Kharge stated that individuals found submitting false declarations to election authorities face potential imprisonment of up to one year under existing legal provisions. Meanwhile, opposition leaders have rejected the allegations of systemic electoral fraud, accusing the state government of utilizing police machinery to intimidate political workers and interfere with routine electoral procedures.

The proposed SIT, if formally constituted, is expected to review the interconnectedness of the police cases registered across districts and examine the source of data utilized in filling out the disputed objection forms. District election offices have been instructed to finalize pending Form 7 verifications ahead of upcoming administrative deadlines while maintaining strict compliance with guidelines concerning bulk submissions.