No voter deleted over Form 7 objections so far, says Karnataka CEO

Bengaluru, Oct 5 : Amid the escalating political controversy over alleged mass deletion of names from Karnataka's electoral rolls, Chief Electoral Officer V. Anbuk Kumar on Monday said no voter had so far been deleted merely on the basis of a Form 7 objection and warned that those knowingly making false declarations could face legal action.

Anbuk Kumar said every Form 7 application seeking deletion of a voter's name must undergo a prescribed process, including issuing notices to both the objector and the concerned voter, verification of documents and a hearing before the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) takes a decision.

"So far, not a single voter has been deleted from the draft roll because an objection was filed," he said after a video conference with District Election Officers and EROs across the State.

The clarification assumes significance amid allegations by the ruling Congress that Form 7 applications were being misused in bulk to target genuine voters during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The CEO said 91,278 Form 7 applications had been received as of October 4, but clarified that the figure did not mean an equal number of voters were facing deletion.

"The objection has to be proved. Only after an enquiry and hearing can the ERO decide whether a name should be deleted," he said.

Anbuk Kumar said EROs had been instructed to examine allegations of false declarations under Rule 20 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, and initiate action under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act wherever a person was found to have knowingly made a false statement.

However, he said no case had so far been registered by the CEO's office under these provisions.

On allegations that pre-printed Form 7 applications carrying voters' details were being circulated before signatures were obtained, Anbuk Kumar stopped short of declaring the practice illegal, saying the matter was linked to FIRs and was therefore sub judice.

"I cannot interpret the rule in public. Please refer to the rules," he said when asked whether pre-printing voter details on Form 7 was legally permissible.

The CEO also said there was no formal definition of a "bulk request", but the election manual prescribes limits on Form 7 submissions. One person or Booth Level Agent can submit up to 10 Form 7 applications in a day and 50 during the SIR exercise, he said.

Applications beyond the prescribed limit would be examined by the ERO, who could reject them or initiate further action in accordance with law.

Karnataka has received 22,05,181 applications under various forms since June 16, including 9,10,732 Form 6 applications, 4,677 Form 6A applications, 91,278 Form 7 applications and 11,98,474 Form 8 applications.

The CEO described the receipt of more than nine lakh Form 6 applications seeking voter enrolment as a "very good development", saying the response showed that young voters and persons who were earlier on the SIR-related list had come forward to participate in the revision process.

For applications received up to September 23, the deadline for claims and objections, there were 7,86,520 Form 6 applications, 4,528 Form 6A applications, 58,220 Form 7 applications and 10,99,875 Form 8 applications.

Anbuk Kumar said around 6.66 lakh cases remained to be disposed of and officials had assured him that the exercise would be completed by October 12, well ahead of the formal deadline of October 22.

The final electoral roll will be published on October 27.

He also rejected allegations that Form 8 was being used to delete names, clarifying that the form was meant for corrections, replacement of EPICs and shifting of residence.

The continuous updating process has now resumed, allowing voters to submit Forms 6, 6A, 7 and 8 even after the SIR claims period, he said.

A fresh special enrolment drive will also be undertaken after publication of the final roll. Booth Level Officers will compare the pre-SIR 2025 roll with the post-SIR final roll and assist eligible persons who are found in their locality but are missing from the new roll in submitting Form 6.

Anbuk Kumar said the Election Commission's objective was to ensure that no eligible voter was left out while maintaining the integrity of the electoral roll.

On the large number of Form 7 applications, he said the CEO's office was still collecting detailed field-level data and would later provide a breakup of applications relating to deaths, duplicates and other grounds, along with the number of applications rejected.

"Once any action is taken by the ERO, we will communicate it. We are not hiding any fact from day one," he said.