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Cong alleges 'electoral fraud' in Bengaluru's Rajarajeshwari Nagar constituency

Congress had last month launched an attack against Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai alleging that he was directly involved in alleged electoral fraud in Bengaluru.

Published on: Dec 8, 2022, 08:27:21 IST
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Karnataka Congress leaders on Wednesday reached the Karnataka State Election commission (SEC) office and lodged a complaint against the alleged electoral fraud in Bengaluru's Rajarajeshwari Nagar assembly constituency.

DK Suresh, Congress MP and brother of Kanakapura Congress candidate DK Shivakumar. (Arijit Sen/HT Photo)
DK Suresh, Congress MP and brother of Kanakapura Congress candidate DK Shivakumar. (Arijit Sen/HT Photo)

Congress Bangalore Rural MP DK Suresh along with other leaders arrived at the SEC Office in KR Circle area in Bengaluru and submitted a memorandum to the Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Meena demanding action into the matter.

Congress leaders said that the Rajarajeshwari Nagar assembly constituency is at the forefront of the entire controversy.

Congress leaders informed that the constituency is divided into nine wards and has 397 polling booths with over 4,54,000 registered voters.

READ | ED issues fresh summons to Karnataka Cong chief DK Shivakumar, brother DK Suresh

"We went through the electoral records of the current year and compared it with the 2018 list, and found out that an additional 91,000 voters were added to Rajarajeshwari Nagar constituency electoral list," DK Suresh alleged.

He also said that voters' names were added to existing houses, and alleged it "to be a reflection of the malpractice perpetuated by the private agency 'Chilume'".

"Records of around 46000 voters have been deleted if compared with the list of 2018 and January 2022," he said.

Congress leaders also claimed that polling stations were shifted deliberately to deprive voters of certain areas from casting their votes. "Polling station for voters at RNS Trust Engineering College was shifted to KLE Society, Nagarabhavi which is nearly around 11km away from the previous location. This clearly explains how an eligible voter without any explanation or fault was forced to go to a far-off place from his registered address to cast his vote," he said.

READ | After data theft case, Bengaluru's civic body conducts new door-to-door survey: Report

Congress leader alleged that there had been massive misuse of the state machinery to favour the BJP and the sitting MLAs and ministers.

"The Election Commission must initiate action against all involved in the scam and the true voters' list must be revived," they said.

Congress had last month launched an attack against Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai alleging that he was directly involved in alleged electoral fraud in Bengaluru.

"Shocking expose reveals that those in citadels of power, including Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai, are responsible for theft of voters' data, fraud and impersonation," Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala had said while addressing a press conference in Bengaluru.

Surjewala had demanded a high-level probe in the matter and claimed a private agency named "Chilume" was authorised by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) - the urban local body of Bengaluru, to carry out a door-to-door survey of voters in the city.

  • Yamini C S
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Yamini C S

    Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More