EC bars Karnataka IAS officer from poll duty, recommends disciplinary action
IAS officer Mohammed Mohsin was suspended for checking PM's chopper
New Delhi, Apr 25: The Election Commission Thursday barred IAS officer Mohammed Mohsin, who had checked Prime Minister Narendra Modi's helicopter in Odisha, from election duties till further orders.
Sources in the Commission said the poll body has also recommended the Karnataka government to take disciplinary action against him.
Mohsin is a 1996 batch IAS officer from Karnataka cadre. He was deployed in Odisha as a general observer and suspended on April 17 for checking Modi's helicopter in Odisha's Sambalpur in "violation" of norms for dealing with SPG protectees.
The sources said Mohsin's suspension order has also been revoked.
"It is a composite order which has been issued today (Thursday) based on the fact finding report of Deputy Election Commissioner Dharmendra Sharma," a senior EC functionary said.
The developments come on a day when the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in Bengaluru stayed the EC order suspending Mohsin.
The CAT maintained that during an election process while reasonable assurances of protection and security must be made available to SPG protectees, it cannot be said "they are eligible for anything and everything".
An order issued by the EC on Tuesday had said the general observer for Sambalpur, Mohammad Mohsin, acted in violation of existing instructions of EC.
"It has been laid down that SPG protectees are exempted from checking. He should have known the instruction being an observer. The reason for suspension is dereliction of duty," an EC source had then said.
After the incident, the officer was attached to the Sambalpur headquarters. Later, he was attached with the chief electoral officer of Karnataka.
The order exempting SPG protectees, including the prime minister, was issued in April 2014, the poll body said.
The Commission took the action against Mohsin on the basis of a report submitted by the district collector and deputy inspector general of police.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
