Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala MLA and Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader AKM Ashraf has made strong allegations against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing it of colluding with electoral officials to reject votes from the Muslim community.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, February 13, the MLA appeared before the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) with those who claimed their names were targeted through false complaints filed by the BJP. Since losing the last election to IUML in the Majeshwari constituency of Kerala’s Kasaragod, the saffron party is trying to control the electoral roll by deleting specific names during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), Ashraf alleged.
Several irregularities have been reported during the process, he added. In booth No 128, the Assistant Returning Officer informed the IUML MLA that the BJP district secretary, Lokesh Londa, allegedly came to remove 90 applications.
“BJP’s district secretary has demanded that the vote be rejected,” he told media persons.
After the alleged request, seven individuals were issued Form 7 notices for removal of their names from the electoral roll, Ashraf said. One of the individuals named in the Form 7, Mohammed, was born, brought up, and even voted for years, he said, adding that now he is being described as “not an Indian citizen.”
Form 7s are filed with the ERO to request the deletion of a name from the voter list or to object to the inclusion of a name. It is filed for reasons such as death, shifting, or duplicate entries. However, since the SIR was initiated, multiple cases of Form 7 misuse have been reported across India, mostly targeted against minority voters.
The other six were marked as “permanently shifted” residence in their forms, he said. “On what basis are such determinations held?” the MLA asked. He accused the BJP leaders of being in cahoots with officials in the constituency.
Stating that most names sought to delete were those of the elderly individuals, he asked, “Isn’t it wrong to drag these 60 70-year-old people falsely?”
Will file a case and demand action: MLA
The MLA promised to register a case, seeking action against those involved in the malpractice. He alleged that first-time voters are being deleted from the voter rolls despite possessing valid documents. Their applications are reportedly rejected for what he called “petty reasons.”
“This is not Bihar or North India; this is Kerala. You cannot win by removing minorities from the voter list,” he asserted.
Manjeshwar constituency is the northernmost assembly constituency in Kerala. In the last election, former BJP president K Surendran lost to Ashraf by 845 votes. Before that, PB Abdul Razak from IUML won narrowly by 89 votes, defeating Surendran.
Meanwhile, the Kasaragod District Collector on Friday informed that as many as 123 applications regarding the updation of the electoral roll were reviewed in the Manjeshwaram Assembly constituency under the SIR.
Out of the 123 applications, eight were Form 7s, and 115 cases were filed under Form 8 (Concerning the shifting of residence or correction of entries in the existing electoral roll). One Form 7 was reportedly filed by a Booth Level Officer (BLO) and seven others by representatives of political parties.
The decisions regarding voter deletion were taken only afterboth objectors and applicants were allowed to present their arguments, Maktoob Media reported.
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