In voter data theft case, EC suspends two poll officials in Karnataka: Report

The Election Commission has suspended two poll officers from Karnataka and has made appointments to oversee and preserve the transparency of the electoral process on Friday in light of the voters' data theft case, reports said.

The Election Commission of India (EC) suspended two poll officials from Karnataka in light of the recent voter data theft case in the southern state on Friday, news agency PTI reported. It has also asked the Chief Secretary of Karnataka to get a fix on the number of additions and deletions made in the electoral rolls of three Assembly seats in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits, which are Mahadevapura, Shivajinagar and Chickpet.

The Election Commission also directed the Chief Secretary of Karnataka to compile a list of additions and deletions made to the electoral rolls in three assembly seats of the BBMP. (For Representation)

The commission is reported to have taken these steps after receiving complaints and petitions from several quarters, including the media and political parties. The incident of data and privacy breach first came to light after a report uncovered that an NGO had obtained permissions from the state government and went door to door posing as government officials on the pretext of spreading awareness on how to apply for a Voters ID online. Members of the organisation are accused of having collected personal information of thousands of voters.

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An official statement from the EC, cited by news agency ANI, read: “S. Rangappa, Additional District Election Officer (ADEO), BBMP, (Central) in charge of 162 Shivajinagar and 169 Chickpet constituencies and Shri K. Srinivas, Additional District Election Officer cum-Deputy Commissioner Bengaluru Urban, in charge of 174 Mahadevapura constituency are directed to be immediately placed under suspension and a departmental enquiry be instituted against them.”

(With inputs from ANI, PTI)