Karnataka SIR: Objectors used death certificates of people to seek deletion of names of voters with similar names
An investigation in Vijayapura, Karnataka, has uncovered a scheme where third-party objectors used legitimate death certificates of deceased individuals to fraudulently remove living voters with similar names from electoral rolls. The scheme involved obtaining real death records from hospitals to manipulate the voter registration process during a special revision period.
Why it matters
This incident exposes significant vulnerabilities in the electoral registration process and raises concerns about the integrity of voter rolls and data privacy in medical records.
Initial investigation into the controversy of some living voters declared dead by third-party objectors who wanted their names removed from the electoral rolls in Vijayapura has revealed that some objectors had used real death certificates to seek deletion of names of voters with similar names.
The controversy erupted after eight persons submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner and District Election Officer (DEO) that third-party objectors had sought deletion of their names from the voter lists, claiming that they had died. The objectors, including some followers of Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, expelled BJP MLA, had attached copies of death certificates along with Form-7 objections as per the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) norms.
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