Full Breakdown
Karnataka’s Form-7 Controversy Escalates Amid Special Intensive Revision
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
On October 1 2026, Karnataka Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar led a five-hour sit-in protest at the office of Chief Electoral Officer V. Anbukkumar, demanding a criminal investigation into alleged bulk filing of Form-7 applications that seek deletion of voters’ names during the state’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The protest prompted the Election Commission of India (ECI) to order a probe and the Karnataka police to register five FIRs the same day.
Background & Context
Form-7 is the statutory form used to request removal of a voter’s name on grounds such as death, permanent shift of residence, duplication or ineligibility. The SIR allows voters to raise objections to the draft roll before the final roll is published. Officials say pre-printed forms containing EPIC numbers were being circulated, enabling large-scale objections without genuine verification.
Data & Statistics
- State-wide filings from June 16 to September 24 total 61,130 Form-7 applications.
- The ECI’s draft-roll data later listed 67,307 applications, a discrepancy of about 6,000 that requires verification.
- Bulk filings reported by the chief minister include:
- Belagavi North – ? 3,000 applications.
- Mudigere – 6,259 applications.
- Babaleshwar – 1,373 applications.
- Narasimharaja (Mysuru) – 1,200 applications.
- Bhalki – 2,285 applications.
- In Kodagu’s Bydagotta polling station, at least 50 pre-filled Form-7s targeting Muslim voters were filed on September 23.
- Police FIRs: five FIRs filed on October 1 under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita 2023, naming BJP workers in Belagavi, Mysuru and Bhalki.
Official Statements & Responses
- Chief Electoral Officer V. Anbukkumar said the office had noticed instances of bulk Form-7 filings and that investigations would follow.
- Election Commission of India instructed officials to initiate legal proceedings against false filings, emphasizing that any action must follow the Rule 20 inquiry.
- Karnataka Police registered FIRs for alleged forgery, cheating and criminal conspiracy under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita 2023.
- B. Y. Vijayendra, state unit president of the BJP, argued that requesting verification of suspected illegal entries is lawful and that the ECI will retain correct names and delete only illegal ones.
Criticism & Opposition
The BJP’s response rejects the notion of a crime, framing the objections as a legitimate verification exercise.
On-the-Ground Reports
Local Booth Level Officers in Belagavi North reported two men claiming to represent the Belagavi City Corporation delivering pre-printed Form-7s targeting Muslim voters, and a BJP worker, Shashikanth Jadhav, denied filing 198 such forms. In Bhalki, complainant Mohammed Ateeq Ahmed said his name appeared on a Form-7 despite voting from the same booth since 2004, and that the listed objectors failed to appear for hearings.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
- The total number of Form-7 applications is reported as 61,130 by the state’s draft-roll data and 67,307 by the ECI’s separate dataset, leaving a verification gap of roughly 6,000 applications.
- Allegations that 45–50 lakh voters have been removed from the roll are attributed to the chief minister and have not been independently corroborated.
What’s Next
The CEO’s circular mandates EROs to conduct inquiries and, where false statements are proven, to initiate action under the Representation of the People Act 1950. The ECI has indicated that any legal action will follow the Rule 20 inquiry. The chief minister has pledged to remain at the CEO’s office until a time-bound probe is ordered, and the Karnataka government has submitted documentary evidence to the Election Commission for further review.