KALABURAGI: A special investigation team probing allegations of vote theft in Aland constituency, conducted a thorough search operation in Kalaburagi until 3 am on Saturday and recovered several crucial documents.
During the raid, documents were found dumped into the Amjar river backwaters near Shakapur bridge. Over 50 SIT officials raided former BJP MLA Subhash Guttedar’s residence in Aland town on Friday.
Sources told Public TV that voters’ lists were also found at Apna Bar and Restaurant giving rise to speculation whether the planning to delete voters’ names were made at the bar. The sources also said that 6-7 meetings were held at the bar and the SIT is now investigating how the voters’ list found its way to the bar.
Speaking to media persons on Saturday, Subhash Guttedar said, “The allegations about vote theft made by Congress leader B R Patil against me are baseless. The SIT has raided my house in Kalaburagi and Aland, but found nothing. There are allegations that documents were burnt. But with Deepavali just days away, workers were clearing unwanted stuff and burnt them. A voter list was found, but as a politician, it is natural that it will be in my possession”.
“This is a conspiracy against me and B R Patil is doing this to get close to Rahul Gandhi. We will cooperate with the investigation and even if they arrest me, I will prepared for it”, he added.
The SIT on Friday conducted raids at several locations in Kalaburagi, including the residence of former MLA Subhash Guttedar and chartered accountant Mallikarjun, in connection with the vote-chori case in Aland constituency. The SIT team, led by SP Shubhanvita, recovered several documents and other evidence during the raids.
The SIT investigation revealed that four suspects, working in a call center-like setup in Kalaburagi, allegedly forged Form 7 applications to maliciously delete genuine voters from the rolls. During the raids, the SIT recovered multiple electronic devices, which are being subjected to forensic examination. The SIT is led by senior IPS officer B K Singh.
