Police intervene after rival groups clash at Veerabhadra Nagar Urdu school; allegations of bulk voter deletions remain contested
Tension briefly prevailed in Belagavi on Tuesday after workers of the Congress and BJP clashed over alleged irregularities in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The confrontation took place at an Urdu school in Veerabhadra Nagar, where Congress workers alleged that a large number of objections had been submitted seeking deletion of voters’ names, particularly those belonging to minority communities. The allegations, however, have been disputed by BJP workers, who maintained that residents have the right to object to voter entries they consider suspicious.
Youth Congress leader Aman Sait alleged that BJP leader Dr. Ravi Patil had used hospital staff to facilitate the submission of more than 200 Form 7 applications, which are used to seek deletion of names from electoral rolls.
Sait further alleged that documents had been manipulated and that some individuals had presented themselves as city corporation staff while submitting objections. He showed some of the Form 7 applications and claimed that they had been acknowledged by Booth Level Officers (BLOs).
Congress leaders also alleged that the exercise was being used to target eligible minority voters through bulk objections.
BJP workers enter school, confrontation follows
The issue escalated when a group of BJP workers led by Murughendragouda Patil reached the school and confronted the Congress workers.
Patil argued that residents were within their rights to raise objections against the inclusion of names in the electoral roll if they had genuine reasons to suspect an entry.
The exchange soon turned into an altercation, prompting police personnel present at the location to intervene.
Police brought the situation under control and took members of both groups to the Market Police Station. They were advised to submit written complaints to the officials of the Belagavi City Corporation overseeing the SIR process.
Reports said some BJP workers were also taken into custody as police moved to prevent the confrontation from escalating further. An inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the disputed Form 7 applications is underway.
Allegations and counterclaims
Speaking to mediapersons, Sait alleged that BJP leaders were attempting to facilitate the deletion of minority voters through the misuse of Form 7 objections. He also alleged that staff linked to Dr. Vijaya Hospital and BJP leader Sonali Jadhav had pressured BLOs to accept the applications.
Another allegation has emerged over the signatures appearing on some of the objection forms. According to reports, Shashikant Jadhav, whose signature and phone number allegedly appeared on the forms, denied filing the objections and claimed that his signatures had been forged.
The BJP, meanwhile, has rejected the allegations of wrongdoing. BJP state vice-president Anil Benake said political parties and residents have the right to question suspicious entries in electoral rolls, while the final decision on whether a voter should remain on the rolls rests with the competent election authorities after verification.
What happens next?
The dispute comes amid the ongoing SIR exercise, under which electoral rolls are being revised and claims and objections are being processed. The official Belagavi district election portal currently provides the SIR 2026 draft roll, claims and objections information and lists of voters identified under categories including dead, duplicate, absent and shifted.
The immediate question now is whether the disputed Form 7 applications were submitted legitimately and whether the objections meet the prescribed requirements.
For voters, the episode also underlines the importance of checking their names and details in the electoral roll and raising objections through the official process if discrepancies are found.
The allegations made by the two political sides remain claims at this stage; the authenticity of the disputed applications and signatures will have to be established through the official inquiry.