The Chief Election Officer (CEO) of Karnataka has issued a clarification following allegations by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi regarding large-scale voter deletions in the state.
Responding to the claims, the CEO said that the suspicious applications were thoroughly investigated and all incorrect requests were rejected, with no unlawful deletions carried out.
According to the official statement, the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) in Aland received 6,018 Form 7 applications for deletion of voter names in December 2022 through online platforms including NVSP, VHA, and GARUDA.
On verification, only 24 applications were found to be genuine, while 5,994 were declared incorrect and rejected. “Accordingly, 24 applications were accepted and 5,994 incorrect applications were rejected and not deleted,” the CEO clarified.
The statement further revealed that an FIR was registered in February 2023 at Aland Police Station in Kalaburagi district after the inquiry confirmed the suspicious nature of the applications.
Later, in September 2023, all information related to the case was handed over to the Superintendent of Police, Kalaburagi, for further investigation as per instructions from the Election Commission of India (ECI).
The clarification comes amid heightened political sparring over alleged “vote chori” in Karnataka, with the state poll body insisting that due process was followed and illegal deletions were prevented.
 of Karnataka has issued a clarification following allegations by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi regarding large-scale voter deletions in the state. ){kind=link}