Form 7 was 'misused' by BJP to delete voters 'en masse' ahead of 2023 polls: Minister Priyank Kharge
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge on Thursday alleged that Form 7 was misused under the previous BJP government to delete voters "en masse", ahead of May 2023 Assembly polls.
His remarks followed claims by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who cited Karnataka's example, that votes of party supporters were being systematically deleted ahead of elections.
Form 7 is an application for objecting inclusion of the name of the other person, or seeking deletion of one's own name, or seeking deletion of any other person’s name in the electoral roll due to death or shifting.
Earlier in the day, addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Rahul Gandhi accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of protecting "vote chors" and people who have destroyed democracy, and cited data from Karnataka's Aland Assembly constituency to support his claim that votes of Congress supporters were being systematically deleted ahead of elections.
In Aland segment, someone tried to delete 6,018 votes and got caught by coincidence, he said, alleging that the names of voters of the Congress were being deleted systematically.
Kharge said, "The Vote Chori trail in Aland (in Kalaburagi district) is a shocking case of large-scale voter deletion. Ahead of the May 2023 Assembly election, Form 7 was misused under the BJP government to delete voters en masse."
In a post on X, he claimed that a total of 6,018 deletions were attempted using automated software and fake logins.
He said, "Verification showed 5,994 were forged, only 24 genuine. 2,494 voters were actually deleted before the fraud was caught. Strong Congress booths, especially with Dalit and minority voters, were targeted."
In one instance, 12 voters were deleted in just 14 minutes, pointing to a "sophisticated vote chori factory", Kharge said.
In another case, the identity of a 63-year-old woman was misused to delete 12 voters.
Noting that the Karnataka CID, which is investigating the case has sent 18 letters to the Election Commission of India seeking IP logs, OTP trails, device IDs, and login details, he alleged that the EC has refused to share the critical data.
The Minister said this raises serious questions. "Who approved these deletion records? Where is the OTP audit trail? When will deleted voters be restored? Why is ECI refusing to cooperate with CID? Who is the ECI trying to protect?"
"When the fraud is this clear, what more evidence is the ECI waiting for? Whom are they shielding?" he asked.
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Pak police registers case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on LeT co-founder
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Lahore (PTI): Pakistan's Punjab Police on Friday registered a case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) co-founder Amir Hamza, who suffered bullet injuries in the attack in Lahore.
On Thursday, two unidentified gunmen riding on a bike opened fire on the vehicle of the private TV channel 24NewsHD TV, owned by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, on Peco Road in Lahore near the TV channel's office.
In the attack, Hamza suffered bullet injuries.
"The FIR has been registered against unidentified gunmen, but it is sealed forthwith," a senior police officer told PTI.
He said the intelligence agencies have taken over this case from the police, and they are currently investigating the matter.
The channel's religious programme host Justice (retd.) Nazir Ahmed Ghazi and Hamza were in the vehicle when it was attacked. Hamza was shifted to a hospital for treatment.
Punjab police on Friday said that "upon receiving information about the incident, the SSP Operations immediately reached the scene and a high alert was imposed in the area. SSP Operations Tauqeer Naeem also met the affected individuals. Thankfully, all present in the vehicle remained safe during the firing."
It further said senior police officers of the Township and Chung, along with a heavy police contingent, were present at the scene.
"Police collected evidence from the site and initiated an investigation. Efforts to arrest the suspects are underway using CCTV footage and geo-fencing techniques. Search and sweep operations are being conducted at various locations, with scrutiny of suspicious individuals ongoing," police said.
It added that those involved in the incident will be traced and arrested soon.
The police sources said that Hamza has been shifted to his residence in Jauhar Town, Lahore, where police and agency personnel met him.
The leadership of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), a political front of Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's banned Jamat-ud-Dawah (JuD), including Hafiz Saeed's son Hafiz Talha Saeed, also called on him.
TV host retired Justice Ghazi, who remained unhurt in the attack, remained a legal counsel for Hafiz Saeed, they said.
The PMML has strongly condemned the attack on Hamza and demanded that those involved in the incident be arrested immediately.
Hamza is regarded as LeT's second most important leader after its chief Hafiz Saeed, who has been in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail since 2019 after getting convicted for several years in terror financing cases.
Hamza has been designated as a terrorist by the US. In the past, he served as the head of LeT's "special campaigns" department.
In 2018, Hamza formed a fundraising group for the LeT following a ban on the JuD and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation by the Pakistani government.
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