JD(S) Leader Demands EC Probe Into 'Abnormal' Voter Spike in Shivamogga
Former MLA K.B. Prasanna Kumar urges EC to probe an abnormal 40,436-voter increase in Shivamogga between 2013-18, citing draft roll anomalies.
Former Shivamogga MLA and Janata Dal (Secular) leader K.B. Prasanna Kumar has urged the Election Commission to investigate what he terms an 'abnormal' surge in voter numbers in the constituency between 2013 and 2018, alleging a possible conspiracy.
Speaking to reporters in Shivamogga on Thursday, Prasanna Kumar highlighted that the electorate stood at 2,15,937 during the 2013 Assembly polls, a seat he won on a Congress ticket. By the 2018 election, this figure had climbed to 2,56,373 — an increase of 40,436 voters. In contrast, the 2023 election saw a rise of just 4,384 voters, taking the total to 2,60,757, which he described as 'normal'.
The JD(S) leader questioned the rationale behind such a large-scale enrolment ahead of the 2018 election, in which he lost to former BJP minister K.S. Eshwarappa. He raised the matter now in light of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Citing the draft voters' list released by the district administration, Prasanna Kumar pointed to 11,575 untraceable voters, 29,967 who had permanently shifted, and 5,719 names already enrolled elsewhere. He noted the draft roll under SIR shows a total of 56,432 Absent, Shift, Duplicate and Dead (ASDD) voters, including 9,187 deceased individuals.
'The untraceable and permanently shifted voters likely point to the reasons behind the abnormal increase in voters during 2013-18,' he alleged.
Drawing parallels, Prasanna Kumar mentioned that constituencies like Chamundeshwari in Mysuru also witnessed a similar spike during the same period, a seat then Chief Minister Siddaramaiah lost in 2018. He has called on the Election Commission to probe the sudden increase and take action against those found responsible.