Fracas over Form-7 in SIR in Karnataka: Are FIRs legally tenable?
Karnataka police have filed FIRs against individuals for alleged electoral roll fraud involving bulk Form-7 submissions. Legal experts are questioning the tenability of these cases because they bypass the Representation of the People Act by using general criminal charges.
Why it matters
The case highlights a jurisdictional conflict between state police and the Election Commission of India regarding the regulation of electoral processes.
As per the Representation of the People Act, 1951, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has sole jurisdiction over electoral rolls, and only EC officials can file complaints over alleged electoral offences. This is why Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar has been demanding that the ECI take up a suo motu inquiry and file criminal cases.
For instance, the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh government had registered an FIR with a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MLA as the complainant over alleged bulk Form-7 submissions in the Parchur Assembly constituency, and an SIT was formed to probe the same. However, it was dissolved after the ECI took strong objection to an FIR being registered over alleged electoral roll fraud based on a complaint by a private individual.
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