Karnataka - Belgaum   

BJP seeks repolling in Gokak town

By Our Staff Correspondent

The Bharatiya Janata Party candidates Suresh Angadi (second from right) and M.L. Muttennavar (third from right) submitting a complaint against alleged bogus voting in Gokak to the Deputy Commissioner, B.S. Palaksha, in Belgaum on Wednesday.

BELGAUM, APRIL 28. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has demanded repolling in all polling booths in Gokak town and in the booth numbers 20 and 21 at Shinglapur in the Gokak Assembly Constituency. The party alleges that there has been "large-scale bogus voting'' in these booths.

M.L. Muttennavar, party candidate in the Gokak Assembly Constituency, and Suresh Angadi, candidate in the Belgaum Lok Sabha Constituency, submitted a complaint in this regard to the Deputy Commissioner, B.S. Palaksha, who is the Returning Officer, here on Wednesday. Another complaint was faxed to the Election Commission.

Mr. Muttennavar told presspersons that the Congress had violated rules and norms and the police and the polling staff remained mute spectators to the bogus voting. He said the BJP workers were beaten up by those of the Congress on the premises of the tahsildar's office when he led the former to register a complaint against bogus voting. It was shocking that the police did not come to their rescue. The BJP workers were beaten up at Budihal also for protesting against bogus voting.

He alleged that the polling officers in the town did not act on specific complaints of bogus voting. He registered complaints at 11.30 a.m. and 12.45 p.m., but the officials ignored them. It was shocking to see hundreds of "blank'' domicile certificates bearing the seals and signatures of village accountants in several villages. These certificates were used for bogus voting. Mr. Muttennavar distributed a few of the certificates to presspersons.

"It was a mockery of democracy; I have seen so many elections, but none of them had seen this kind of bogus voting and the entire administration and the police acting as spectators,'' he said.

He said the Congress had created an atmosphere of "fear'' all over the constituency to prevent voters from coming to polling booths. The polling officials did not heed the requests to provide protection to the voters. When the matter was brought to the notice of Deputy Commissioner, the official said he could not do anything until he received reports from the presiding officers.

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