Bengaluru, May 6: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has raised serious allegations of electoral fraud in the Shringeri assembly constituency. He claims that there was a “criminal conspiracy” surrounding the management and counting of postal ballots during the recent elections.
The recount of postal ballots in the Shringeri constituency was conducted following directives from the High Court. After the recount, the BJP candidate defeated the incumbent Congress MLA.
During a press conference at his official residence, Krishna, Siddaramaiah stated that Congress candidate T.D. Rajegowda initially won by a margin of 201 votes, securing 59,171 votes against BJP’s D.N. Jeevaraj, who received 58,970 votes.
He detailed that out of Rajegowda’s total votes, 58,602 were from EVMs and 569 from postal ballots, while Jeevaraj garnered 58,278 EVM votes and 692 postal ballots.
Siddaramaiah noted that all these votes were declared valid at the time, with election officials and counting agents signing off on the results.
However, following allegations of irregularities, Jeevaraj filed a petition in the Karnataka High Court, which ordered a recount on March 6.
Siddaramaiah claimed that the recount drastically altered the postal ballot figures. He alleged that only 314 postal votes were deemed valid for Rajegowda, while 255 were declared invalid. In contrast, Jeevaraj received 690 postal votes, indicating a clear case of criminal conspiracy and organized vote theft.
He further asserted that there was deliberate tampering with approximately 250 votes cast in favor of Rajegowda. The Chief Minister emphasized that this constitutes outright vote theft.
Siddaramaiah explained that after counting, all electoral records are sealed and stored in boxes. He accused the BJP, which was in power at both the state and central levels at the time, of misusing officials to manipulate the ballots.
He stated that these actions occurred under the rule of their so-called “double-engine government,” and the involvement of staff in ballot manipulation is evident. This is a criminal conspiracy.
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