3 weeks ago
Prakash Raj claims name deleted from Bengaluru electoral roll
A famous Indian movie actor named Prakash Raj found out that his name was taken off the list of people who are allowed to vote.
This happened during a big cleanup of the voter list in the state of Karnataka.
He was surprised because he was born in that area, went to school and college there, and even ran for a big political position there once.
He made a video where he joked about it and asked what papers he would have to show to get his voting card back.
He also warned that powerful people should not be able to stop citizens from voting just because those citizens may not vote for them.
Many other voters are in the same situation — in Bengaluru, nearly half of all registered voters have been marked as absent, shifted, dead or duplicate.
Officials say people should check and fix their details before the SIR deadline on 17 August.
The actor also spoke out against police using tear gas and batons on students protesting in the state of Jharkhand.
Prakash Raj believes everyone's right to vote should be protected.
Actor Prakash Raj claimed in a video on X and Instagram that his name was deleted from the Bengaluru electoral roll during Karnataka's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
He said he was one of 65 lakh voters whose voting rights were removed from the Bangalore constituency where he was born, educated and once ran as an MP candidate.
Reports say his name appears on the ASDDO (Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate and Others) list for Bangalore Central's Shantinagar constituency, with 'permanently shifted' cited as the reason.
Statewide, forms of all 5.54 crore electors were digitised, with 19.69 per cent marked under ASDDO and 65.85 lakh marked permanently shifted; in Bengaluru, 49.42 lakh of 1.03 crore voters were flagged.
The Election Commission extended the SIR enumeration deadline to 17 August, and Raj also condemned police tear gas and baton use against JPSC and JSSC aspirants protesting in Ranchi, Jharkhand.
- Who
- Actor Prakash Raj, Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukumar, and the Election Commission.
- What
- Prakash Raj claimed his name was deleted from the Bengaluru electoral roll during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which flagged millions of voters under the ASDDO (Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate and Others) category.
- Where
- Bengaluru and Karnataka, India, with related student protests in Ranchi, Jharkhand.
- When
- On Tuesday, during the ongoing Karnataka SIR exercise; the enumeration deadline was extended to 17 August, though reports differ on the draft list date (17 August per one report, 24 August per another, with final rolls set for 27 October).
- Why
- The SIR exercise is meant to clean up electoral rolls by flagging ineligible or shifted voters, but Prakash Raj and others fear that eligible voters are being wrongly excluded.
Prakash Raj and affected voters
Election authorities
Reason for voter deletions
Prakash Raj and affected voters
Prakash Raj suggested the deletions are politically motivated, saying powers are being used to deny voting rights to citizens who may not elect the ruling side.
Election authorities
The SIR is presented as a routine administrative exercise to clean up electoral rolls, with flagged ASDDO voters asked to verify their details for inclusion in the new list.
Impact on eligible voters
Prakash Raj and affected voters
The actor questions how lifelong residents and former MP candidates can be removed, warning that many eligible citizens are being disenfranchised.
Election authorities
Flagged voters have been asked to verify their details and take necessary steps to ensure their inclusion, and data suggests many names fall under categories like permanently shifted or untraceable voters.
Key facts
- Actor
- Prakash Raj
- Claim
- Name deleted from Bengaluru electoral roll during SIR exercise
- State electors digitised
- 5,54,32,314 (5.54 crore)
- Electors marked ASDDO
- 1,09,13,776 (19.69 per cent)
- Bengaluru voters flagged
- 49.42 lakh of 1.03 crore
- Highest deletion rate
- Bommanahalli at 57.08 per cent
- SIR enumeration deadline
- Extended to 17 August
- Related legal case
- Conditional bail granted July 10 over alleged possession of four voter ID cards
Quotes
Prakash Raj
Indian actor and former MP candidate
“"I am one of the sixty‑five lakh voters whose vote right has been deleted from Bangalore constituency after SAR. Nice joke, no? I was born in this constituency. I lived in this constituency. I had my schooling, college, theatre. And for your kind information, I was an MP candidate of this constituency too."”
livemint.com
telegraphindia.com
rediff.com
deccanchronicle.com
telegraphindia.com
“"But one little word, my friend: you may use your powers to deny few of the citizens the right to vote who may not elect you. But can you stop us… from bringing you down? Just asking. Bye."”
deccanchronicle.com
Sources
Prakash Raj claims his name deleted from Bengaluru voter list during SIR: 'I was born here, was an MP candidate'
Prakash Raj says name deleted from Bengaluru electoral roll during Karnataka SIR
Actor Prakash Raj claims his name deleted from voter list amid SIR
SIR: Prakash Raj Claims Name Deleted From Bengaluru Electoral Rolls
BJP-critic actor Prakash Raj off Karnataka voter rolls after name gets deleted during SIR process
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