Karnataka SIR battle heats up as BJP announces protest

The party objected strongly after police obtained a search warrant from a court.

Bengaluru: The ongoing controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has intensified in Karnataka, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stepping up protests against police cases involving its leaders in Ballari and Belagavi.

In Ballari, BJP Booth-Level Agent (BLA) 1 Srinivas Motkar is facing two first information reports (FIRs) registered at Brucepet and APMC police stations in connection with allegations of misuse of Form 7. Motkar had submitted a complaint seeking verification of the eligibility of 7,561 voters.

The BJP has denied targeting any particular community and said its action was aimed only at seeking verification of voter eligibility. The party objected strongly after police obtained a search warrant from a court and moved to search Motkar’s office on Talur Road based on a complaint filed by Congress BLA-1 Gautham.

Protest on Oct 5

Calling the police action excessive, BJP leaders said they would hold a protest on October 5. The demonstration will begin at Royal Circle and proceed towards the Brucepet and APMC police stations, where the party has threatened to stage a gherao.

The SIR controversy has also resulted in a legal reprieve for BJP leader Dr Ravi Patil in Belagavi. The Second Additional District and Sessions Court granted conditional bail to the former BJP candidate from Belagavi North.

Case against BJP leader

A case had been registered at Market police station against Patil and 24 others following a complaint by a Booth-Level Officer (BLO). They were accused of attempting to delete the names of 198 minority voters using Form 7 applications at polling booths 195 and 196 in Veerabhadranagar.

The alleged incident took place on September 22. Patil had reportedly been absconding amid fears of arrest. The court granted him bail against a Rs 50,000 bond and one surety.

With the BJP preparing for protests in Ballari and the legal proceedings continuing in Belagavi, the SIR issue is emerging as a major flashpoint between the Congress and BJP in the state.