D.K. Shivakumar and the delegation at the Chief Electoral Officer’s office in Bengaluru. Photograph supplied.
Bengaluru: Karnataka’s Chief Electoral Officer has directed election officials to take legal action against applicants who knowingly submit false statements in voter-registration forms, while requiring an inquiry before such action. The direction follows reports of bulk Form 7 applications and allegations that the forms are not genuine.
The October 1 letter from Chief Electoral Officer V. Anbukkumar goes beyond Form 7: it covers false written statements or declarations in Forms 6, 6A, 7 and 8. It has been sent to district election authorities and Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) in all 224 Assembly constituencies.
The direction comes amid the political dispute over alleged attempts to remove eligible voters from electoral rolls. Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and his Cabinet colleagues had staged a dharna at the Chief Electoral Officer’s office seeking a criminal case and investigation.
Inquiry must precede action
The letter directs the ERO concerned to act under Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, against an applicant who has knowingly made a false statement or declaration in writing in an application or form.
It expressly requires that such action be preceded by an inquiry under Rule 20 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. The distinction is significant: the letter orders an inquiry-based process and action under the law; it does not announce that an FIR has already been registered or establish that every bulk application is false.
Open / download the CEO’s letter (PDF)
Bulk Form 7 applications flagged
The CEO’s office says instances of bulk Form 7 applications being filed before EROs have come to its notice. It records allegations that such forms are not genuine, without naming any applicant or political party in the directive.
Its subject concerns action against applicants filing false claims and objections. The operative direction covers four forms—6, 6A, 7 and 8—rather than confining the instructions to the Form 7 applications at the centre of the present controversy.
Directions sent across Karnataka
The letter, numbered DPAR 477 CHUMAPA 2026, is addressed to district election officers and deputy commissioners, the Bengaluru district election officer and GBA chief commissioner, additional district election authorities in Bengaluru, and EROs of all 224 constituencies.
V. Anbukkumar issued the communication as Chief Electoral Officer and ex-officio secretary to the government in the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (Elections).
The political dispute so far
Shivakumar has sought an investigation into the source of voter details on pre-printed Form 7 applications. His allegations of a conspiracy to remove eligible voters prompted demands for criminal action.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi questioned police action over the Chief Minister’s dharna. Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy separately alleged that the SIR protest was intended to divert attention from the NICE controversy.
For the background to that dispute, read our reports on Kumaraswamy’s NICE land allegations and Shivakumar’s response defending his assets and challenging Kumaraswamy to an Assembly debate.
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