Belagavi: Belagavi Market police registered an FIR on Sept 30 against BJP leader Dr Ravi Patil and 20 to 25 others for allegedly attempting to delete 198 voters’ names from electoral rolls using Form 7 applications containing forged documents and false information.
The case followed a complaint by the booth-level officer of Ward 12 against Patil, Prashant Mundinamani, an employee of Vijay Hospital headed by Patil, Shankar Nayak and others.
The accused allegedly targeted Muslim voters whose names were legally included in the rolls at polling booths 195 and 196 in Veerabhadra Nagar on Sept 22, according to the complaint. Local residents reportedly intercepted and questioned Patil and two others, alleging they were attempting to submit bogus Form 7 applications seeking deletion of the names. Police invoked Sections 318(4), 336(3), 336(4), 353, 61(2), 3(5), 3(7), 192 and 190 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Patil had contested Belagavi North Assembly constituency on a BJP ticket and lost to MLA Asif Sait by around 3,000 votes.
Stay updated with the latest Hubballi news. Belagavi MP Jagadish Shettar condemned the FIR, saying it was wrong to register cases against leaders and workers for raising complaints against the SIR process. Download the TOI App.