Karnataka’s special intensive revision of electoral rolls has left more than 2.8 lakh hearings pending, with Bengaluru accounting for nearly two-thirds of the backlog ahead of the final deadlines for claims, objections and publication of the revised voter list.
According to Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukkumar, 43.8 lakh notices were generated across the state and 43.7 lakh had been delivered, representing a delivery rate of 99.8%. Hearings have been completed in 40.9 lakh cases, or 93.5%, leaving over 2.8 lakh cases to be processed.
Bengaluru Urban and the three Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike districts account for about 1.8 lakh pending hearings. BBMP South has the largest backlog, with 65,335 cases pending after 84.4% of hearings were completed. Bengaluru Urban follows with 54,943 pending cases.
The city accounted for 24.1 lakh notices, roughly 55% of Karnataka’s total. Of the 8,570 notices that have not been delivered statewide, 3,522 are in Bengaluru. Belagavi recorded the state’s lowest notice-delivery rate at 96.1%, with 3,252 notices yet to reach voters.
Outside Bengaluru, Gulbarga had completed 80.6% of its hearings, followed by Bidar at 85.1% and Bengaluru Rural at 86%. Koppal has completed all hearings, according to the figures reported by the Times of India. Claims and objections must be disposed of by October 22, while the final electoral roll is scheduled for publication on October 27.
The revision has also generated a large volume of applications. Since June 16, the Election Commission has received 23 lakh forms, including 12.3 lakh Form 8 applications for corrections or changes and 9.5 lakh Form 6 applications for inclusion of names. Bengaluru Urban alone received 2.6 lakh forms. Form 7, which is used to object to the inclusion or seek deletion of a name, was filed 1.1 lakh times statewide.
Form 7 filings were highest in Shivamogga, with 6,987 applications, followed by Dakshina Kannada with 6,762 and Bidar with 6,101. The filings have come under scrutiny amid reports of bulk applications that are allegedly not genuine. Anbukkumar has directed electoral registration officers to act against anyone who knowingly makes false statements in Forms 6, 6A, 7 and 8.
The Karnataka government is also considering a special investigation team to examine nine cases registered across the state over alleged attempts to delete voters through bulk Form 7 applications. Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara held consultations with senior police officials on whether the cases were interconnected. Shivakumar has alleged that the BJP conspired to manipulate electoral rolls, a charge that would require investigation to establish responsibility and intent.
Separately, the Karnataka High Court has granted an interim stay on FIRs registered against two BJP booth-level agents over bulk Form 7 applications. Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde passed the order after hearing petitions filed by Deepak Singh R and G S Vasanthalakshmi.
The Yeshwantpur police case against Singh concerns applications seeking deletion of 136 voters in the Malleswaram Assembly constituency. The case against Vasanthalakshmi concerns 778 Form 7 applications and was registered by Vyalikaval police. The complaints were filed by Anoop Iyengar, who contested the 2023 election from Malleswaram as a Congress candidate.
The petitioners denied wrongdoing and argued that officials could verify whether the voters named in their applications were genuine. Police contended that the applicants had exceeded a limit of 50 Form 7 applications and had acted with an ulterior motive. The High Court questioned whether filing more than 50 applications constituted an offence by itself and noted that authorities must issue notice to voters before deleting names. The court described the complaint as appearing hasty and premature.
The Election Commission has ordered a parallel drive to identify left-out and first-time voters. Booth-level officers will compare the current roll with the pre-revision list, prepare lists of missing names and visit homes, covering 20 to 25 electors a week over approximately a month. Camps are also planned at polling booths, night shelters and labour colonies. Eligible residents who are not on the roll can apply for inclusion at any time.
