A delegation of Congress leaders, including A.H. Mushrif, submitting a complaint to Deputy Commissioner Vijaymahantesh Danammanavar in Vijayapura on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Congress has said that BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal fudged electoral rolls in Vijayapura to include names of non-residents of Bijapur City Assembly Constituency in violation of the law during the Assembly elections.
A delegation of Congress leaders submitted a complaint to the Deputy Commissioner and District Electoral Officer Vijaymahantesh Danammanavar in Vijayapura on Thursday.
Congress candidate Abdul Hamid Mushrif, who lost the polls, said that a copy of the complaint will be sent to the Election Commission of India and the President.
Mr. Yatnal included the names of thousands of fake voters to ensure his win, Mr. Mushrif told the Deputy Commissioner.
Mr. Mushriff lost to Mr. Yatnal in Bijapur City Assembly Constituency by 8,233 votes.
According to the complaint, Mr. Yatnal, in connivance with booth level officers and electoral roll revision officers, got included several thousands of fake voters from neighbouring Chincholi taluk and Nagathan constituency in Vijayapura district.
The BJP leader falsely claimed that these were labourers employed in Sri Siddhagiri Sugar Factory owned by him and that they were ordinary residents of Bijapur City constituency in Vijayapura district, Mr. Mushrif said.
He pointed out that some Congress workers had caught scores of fake voters from Chincholi and took them to a police station on polling day.
The complainant accused the returning officer of Bijapur City constituency of being involved in electoral malpractice.
The complaint said that over 51,000 names were added to the electoral rolls in 100 days between January and April 2023.
“Last year, the electoral rolls in Bijapur City constituency (ACID-30) had 2.47 lakh voters. Of these, 17,000 names were deleted. But, in January 2023, around 31,000 names were added. However, just 12 days before polling, the number of names was increased to 2.81 lakh. This clearly indicates that the MLA misused official machinery to ensure his victory by deceit,” the complaint has said.
It also notes that in booth number 130, the names of over 1,400 electors have been added, though the population in the area is far below that.
It says that over 15,000 names of voters from Nagathan were included in the electoral rolls of Bijapur City constituency. The complaint has urged the authorities to annul the elections in Bijapur City and order a judicial inquiry.
The Deputy Commissioner said that he will forward the complaint to the authorities concerned.
The delegation included the former Mayor Sajjade Peeran Mushrif, Appu Pujari, Dinesh Halli, Vijanath Karpurmath, Bharati Hosmani and Asma Kalebag.