The BLO and BLO supervisor refused to accept the bulk submission and did not issue an acknowledgement. Balachander allegedly left the forms at the polling station and left the premises. A subsequent field verification by election officials found that all 30 voters were residing at the addresses recorded in the electoral rolls.
The case is the first FIR reported in Telangana over alleged misuse of Form 7 during the current SIR exercise. Form 7 is used to object to the inclusion of a name or seek deletion of an existing entry from the electoral roll, subject to verification by election authorities.
The development follows Telangana chief electoral officer C. Sudharshan Reddy’s direction to district election officials to take action against applicants found to have knowingly submitted false statements or declarations in Forms 6, 6A, 7 and 8.
The CEO directed officials to conduct the prescribed inquiry under the Registration of Electors Rules before initiating action. Election authorities have also stressed that filing a Form 7 application does not by itself result in deletion of a voter’s name; claims are subject to scrutiny and verification.
The controversy has also spread to Bahadurpura and Goshamahal constituencies in Hyderabad, where similar pre-printed Form 7 applications have been reported. In Goshamahal, a BLO reportedly refused to accept a bulk submission after finding procedural irregularities.
The Telangana Congress has alleged that pre-printed Form 7 applications were being used in an organised attempt to remove eligible voters from the rolls and has sought criminal investigations into the matter. The BJP has rejected allegations of a party-led voter deletion drive.
AIMIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi has separately complained to the Telangana CEO over alleged misuse of Form 7 in Goshamahal. He alleged that 122 applications were submitted at one polling station with voter details pre-printed on the forms and argued that Muslim voters were being specifically targeted. These are allegations that remain under investigation.
The issue comes amid a large volume of Form 7 applications filed during the SIR exercise. Telangana election officials reported 28,753 Form 7 applications statewide, with around 5,000 from Hyderabad, as of the latest reported count.
The claims and objections phase of the SIR is scheduled to conclude on 7 October, with disposal of claims and objections due by 5 November. The final electoral rolls are scheduled to be published on 9 November.
With IANS inputs
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