Sringeri recount row: Congress alleges postal ballot tampering, vows legal fight
Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President, D.K. Shivakumar, on Tuesday alleged large-scale irregularities in the recounting of votes in the Sringeri Assembly constituency, claiming that postal ballots cast in favour of the Congress candidate were tampered with and subsequently invalidated. He further vowed a legal fight.
It can be recalled that in the recounting of postal ballots for Sringeri Assembly segment, BJP candidate D.N. Jeevaraj has emerged victorious against sitting Congress MLA, T.D. Rajegowda.
Addressing reporters at the Chief Minister’s official residence ‘Krishna’ in Bengaluru, Shivakumar said the developments were unprecedented and amounted to a serious electoral offence. “Such an incident has not taken place anywhere in the country. We will take up a legal fight against this,” he said.
Elaborating on the counting process, he noted that postal ballots are typically opened in the presence of agents from both parties and election officials, and are validated before being counted. He alleged that after this procedure was completed, the BJP candidate misused officials to alter the postal ballots.
“They specifically insisted on recounting certain bundles of votes. There appears to be involvement of both officials and the BJP candidate in this malpractice. A thorough and serious investigation is necessary,” he said.
Shivakumar urged the Election Commission to intervene and ensure justice, describing the incident as “one of the biggest conspiracies in the country.” He further accused the BJP in Karnataka of being involved in the alleged wrongdoing and asserted that the Congress would pursue the matter through legal means.
“We know how to handle politics,” he added.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also levelled serious allegations of electoral malpractice in the Sringeri Assembly constituency, claiming that a “criminal conspiracy” had taken place in the handling of postal ballots and vote counting.
Victorious BJP leader Jeevaraj officially received the MLA certificate on Monday and described this victory, achieved after three years of continuous legal battle, as “a victory for truth.” Jeevaraj, who had alleged irregularities during vote counting after the 2023 election, said that a significant discrepancy was found in votes that had previously been rejected during the recount.