FIR filed over alleged misuse of Form-7 applications in Jayanagar

Bengaluru: An FIR has been registered at Jayanagar police station following a complaint by KPCC women’s wing president and former MLA Sowmya Reddy, alleging an attempt to remove voters’ names from the electoral rolls through misuse of Form-7 applications.

Reddy has alleged that Form-7 applications were submitted seeking deletion of the names of 5,698 voters in the Jayanagar Assembly constituency. She has raised doubts over the authenticity and purpose of the applications and alleged that there was a deliberate attempt to target genuine voters.

According to the complaint, the names of C. Ramesh and Roopa were allegedly used in the applications. The complainant has claimed that their personal details were copied and used without their knowledge or consent to submit the Form-7 applications. The complaint also refers to BJP functionaries Ramakrishna and Yogesh, among others. An FIR has reportedly been registered against five people in connection with the allegations. The name of Jayanagar BJP MLA C.K. Ramamurthy has also been mentioned in the complaint, though the allegations are subject to police investigation. Reddy has submitted video material and other evidence in support of her complaint and urged the police to examine the records and take appropriate legal action. The alleged applications were spread across several wards. Halsuru ward reportedly accounted for 54 applications, while Bairasandra wards had 525 and 719 applications respectively. Gurappanapalya had the highest number, with 4,327 applications. A total of 82 applications were reported from Jayanagar wards 177, 178 and 179. Form-7 is used to seek deletion of a voter’s name from the electoral roll or raise an objection to an existing entry. Police have begun investigating the allegations and are expected to verify the applications, supporting documents and the identities of those who submitted them.