ECI 'failed' to cooperate with CID probe into large scale vote deletion: Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday backed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s charges of large-scale voter deletions, alleging that the Election Commission (EC) has failed to cooperate with the CID probe ordered by the Karnataka government.
Speaking to PTI, Shivakumar said, "What Rahul Gandhi has said is a fact. There is nothing wrong with it. He has said the truth."
Some people attempted to delete a few voters' names by giving wrong telephone numbers. "They (unknown fraudsters) wanted to delete a very large number of votes. Ultimately we found it out," Shivakumar said.
According to him, the Criminal Investigation Department of Karnataka, which has been assigned to probe the matter, is seeking information about the telephone numbers used for deleting the voters.
"The CID had requested the ECI, which is not cooperating," the Deputy CM alleged.
He cautioned that similar instances had occurred in KR Puram, adding that until the EC supports the investigation, the CID cannot proceed.
"What Rahul Gandhi has said is true. We have to take some drastic action. My CM also knows," he stated.
On the issue of Bengaluru’s poor roads and complaints from IT companies, Shivakumar said the government is committed to finding solutions rather than engaging in political blame games.
"We are there to solve the problem. I've asked the IT minister… in every part of the country this problem persists; only Bengaluru is making noise," he remarked.
He further said that a committee has been constituted with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to address the issue of potholes and road infrastructure.
"When it rains, even around Vidhana Soudha, there are 20 potholes. We are there to solve their problems. Tweeting and making big news will not solve the problem. I've fixed time and devised a plan to solve all problems relating to roads," he asserted, promising swift action.
Shivakumar’s reaction came after online trucking platform BlackBuck Co-Founder & CEO Rajesh Yabaji on Tuesday said that the company has decided to move out of its current location at Bellandur on Bengaluru's Outer Ring Road (ORR), citing commuting and road infrastructure issues.
The ORR, which is one of the IT corridors in the city, often witnesses traffic congestion.
"ORR (Bellandur) has been our "office + home" for the last 9 years. But it's now very-very hard to continue here. We have decided to move out," Yabaji said in a post on 'X'.
"Background: Average commute for my colleagues shot up to 1.5+ hrs (one way). Roads full of potholes & dust, coupled with lowest intent to get them rectified. Didn't see any of this changing in the next 5 years," he added.
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Fascism will not be allowed to enter through the back door of vote rigging: CM Siddaramaiah
New Delhi: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday asserted that fascism would not be allowed to enter India “through the back door of vote rigging” and called upon citizens to collectively defend the country’s democratic foundations.
Speaking after participating in an anti–vote rigging protest organised in New Delhi, Siddaramaiah said the gathering was not merely a political demonstration but a stand to protect Indian democracy. “We have come to the heart of our republic not as Congress workers or voters, but as protectors of Indian democracy,” he said.
Emphasising the importance of the right to vote, Siddaramaiah said it was the most sacred right guaranteed by the Constitution and the very foundation of democracy.
“Through voting, a farmer shapes the future of his children, a worker safeguards his dignity, a youth realises dreams, and a nation expresses its collective will,” he said.
He accused the BJP-led Union government of attempting to undermine this right through what he termed systematic vote rigging, including the alleged misuse of the special revision of electoral rolls. “This power is being stolen repeatedly,” he alleged.
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Warning against authoritarian tendencies, Siddaramaiah said history had shown that dictatorship does not begin with violence but with the misuse of institutions and manipulation of democratic systems.
“Across the world, authoritarian regimes pretend to protect democracy while quietly subverting it. This is what the BJP is doing today,” he charged.
He alleged that the ruling party was controlling institutions, intimidating electoral machinery, distorting voter lists, suppressing voter turnout in opposition strongholds, and misusing money and power. “This is not mere maladministration. Vote rigging is an attack on the very idea of India,” he said.
Siddaramaiah further claimed that governments formed through “stolen votes” could not be considered democratic.
“Such regimes survive through fear, fraud and distortion of the people’s mandate,” he said, adding that vote rigging posed the biggest threat to the republic since Independence.
Praising Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Siddaramaiah said he had shown exceptional courage in exposing alleged irregularities in voter lists, booth-level manipulation and “systematic, organised vote rigging” across several states, including Karnataka, Haryana and Bihar.
Referring to Karnataka, Siddaramaiah cited Mahadevpura and Aland constituencies as examples highlighted by Gandhi. In Mahadevpura, he said, thousands of allegedly fake and fraudulent voter entries and discrepancies in electoral rolls pointed to a narrow BJP victory. In Aland, he said, attempts were made to remove the names of legitimate voters ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections.
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He noted that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) had recently filed a chargesheet accusing seven persons, including a former BJP MLA and his son, of attempting to delete the names of around 6,000 voters in Aland.
“This is a significant legal step in the fight against vote rigging,” he said.
Siddaramaiah concluded by stating that the fight against vote rigging was rooted in constitutional morality, Ambedkarite thought and the core principle of democracy. “Sovereignty belongs to the people, not to any party, regime or those who seek to steal elections,” he said.
