Kalaburagi: Rural Development, Panchayat Raj, Information Technology and Biotechnology Minister Priyank Kharge has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of being the key accused in alleged irregularities during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Speaking to the media at the Aiwan-e-Shahi Guest House in Kalaburagi, Kharge said the Election Commission, rather than BJP leaders, must answer the questions raised by the Congress regarding alleged irregularities in the SIR process. He questioned whether it was wrong for the Congress to seek explanations over the deletion of crores of voters’ names from electoral rolls.AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi have raised several questions about the revision of electoral rolls. However, BJP leaders are responding to the allegations while the Election Commission remains silent, he said. He criticised the Commission for failing to respond to questions raised over the past one-and-a-half months, despite previously reacting immediately whenever the Congress raised an issue,
Kharge alleged that around 13.2 crore voters had been removed from electoral rolls without proper justification. He questioned whether it was wrong to seek an explanation for the deletion of nearly 15 per cent of voters’ names. He also questioned why Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had taken unilateral decisions despite written objections from two other Election Commissioners, when decisions should have been taken collectively by all three.
He alleged that Form-7 applications were being misused to delete voters’ names from electoral rolls. According to him, BJP and RSS workers in some places had submitted applications seeking the removal of voters’ names. He cited incidents in Vijayapura, where false complaints were reportedly filed claiming that voters had died, and in Chittapur, where attempts were allegedly made to remove the names of 40 people belonging to a particular community.Kharge said an inquiry in Chittapur revealed that the concerned voters were still residing in the same locality and had not shifted elsewhere. Following this, the Deputy Commissioner had directed officials to visit the spot and register an FIR in connection with the incident, he said.
He also sought answers to several questions, including who changed the Election Commission’s software, who modified the login system and enabled its alleged misuse, who introduced changes in the Form-6 process and who authorised modifications to the Election Commission’s ERONET portal.Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar as accused in the SIR controversy, Kharge demanded a comprehensive investigation into the alleged irregularities in electoral roll revision. He also demanded the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar.
Referring to BJP leaders taking to the streets to protest over the issue, Kharge said Union Minister Piyush Goyal had rarely participated in street protests in the past. His decision to do so now indicates that several facts are coming to light, he remarked.He challenged those alleging that foreign funding and foreign involvement were behind students’ protests to produce evidence. “When your party is in power at the Centre, why are you not presenting the documents?” he asked.
Responding to remarks made by BJP MLC N. Ravikumar, Kharge said those speaking about senior leader Mallikarjun Kharge should remember his long political experience. He also challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whom he described as the political mentor of BJP leaders, to hold a press conference and answer questions from journalists.Kharge said the BJP never questions the electoral system when it wins elections. He added that even as IT-BT Minister, he had advocated conducting an ethical hackathon to ensure transparency in the electoral system. He questioned why anyone should oppose such an initiative.
Responding to BJP leaders’ claims that the defeat in the four Legislative Council constituencies would indicate the outcome of the 2028 Assembly elections, Kharge asked whether electoral defeats in Varanasi and Nagpur could also be considered indicators of future election results. He challenged those who win through ballot papers to contest future elections using ballot papers as well.Kharge said rainfall had been deficient this year, resulting in rivers and other water sources drying up. Eleven taluks in the district had been declared drought-affected, and the ground-truth verification process was underway.Joint surveys were being conducted to assess crop losses, and the government had initiated steps to distribute crop insurance and compensation to affected farmers, he said.
Regarding the sugarcane farmers’ demands, Kharge said the state government had a mechanism to announce a State Advised Price (SAP) for sugarcane. The government was taking farmers’ demands seriously, and the Chief Minister had already held discussions with them. He appealed to authorities not to exert unnecessary pressure on farmers.Reacting to statements by Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, Kharge questioned why those who had promised to double farmers’ income were now silent about their problems. He also asked which Union Ministers had visited the farmers’ protest sites.,He said the state government was being forced to bear financial responsibility for implementing several Central government schemes. The financial burden imposed on Karnataka through centrally sponsored schemes needed to be discussed. He added that the Centre must also fulfil its responsibilities regarding crop insurance, minimum support prices and compensation for farmers.
Kharge said a bio-economy initiative had been launched through the Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board. The government was giving priority to the use of technology in agriculture, including new initiatives such as pesticide spraying through drones in Kalaburagi.Kharge said water sources in the district were drying up due to inadequate rainfall, creating difficulties for drinking water supply and agriculture.The state government had requested Maharashtra to release 15 TMC of water into the Bhima River. The Maharashtra authorities had reportedly assured them that water would be released, but the timing was yet to be confirmed, he said.He added that ₹1 crore was being allocated to each taluk, with instructions to undertake necessary works, including the installation of borewells.The issue of sharing Bhima River water had also been raised through an all-party delegation, and the government would examine further legal options, he said.
Kharge said several major institutions, including HMT, NAL, the steel plant, HAL and DRDO, had been established under Congress governments.He criticised Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy for publicising the introduction of two new HMT watches instead of focusing on establishing new industries in Karnataka. He questioned whether Kumaraswamy had brought any new industrial projects to the state in his capacity as a Union Minister.Continuing his attack, Kharge said he had implemented 11 policies through his department. Referring to Kumaraswamy’s earlier demand for the truth behind a sting operation case to come out, Kharge sarcastically questioned why he had undertaken a padayatra after arrests were made and the facts of the case emerged.
