'Requested all voters to protect their rights...': DK Shivakumar amid SIR process in Karnataka

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Sunday emphasised that the State government has urged the voters to protect their voting rights, underlining that it will hold protests lawfully and democratically whenever needed.

Addressing reporters, the Chief Minister said that it is the Opposition's job to raise allegations and the government is responsible for ensuring justice for everyone.

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"It is the job of the opposition to make allegations. We, on behalf of the government, want to ensure justice for all. We have requested all voters to protect their rights. We are acting according to the law and as per the due process of the Election Commission. We also have our protests, and we will hold them lawfully and democratically wherever necessary," he said.

The remarks came as the Opposition raised serious concerns regarding alleged "irregularities" in the SIR process in Karnataka.

Earlier today, BJP legislator GB Jyothi Ganesh said that the instructions of the apex poll body are not being followed properly by the officers on the ground. The MLA has alleged that Congress leaders are "pressuring" Booth Level Officers (BLO) to enrol ineligible individuals into the electoral rolls to increase the party's vote share.

"In a lot of places, complaints have come that some BLOs and government officers are gathering a lot of crowd, especially the minority crowd in mosques, open spaces. I think they are doing this based on the instructions from the Congress party. They are not acting as per the instructions given by the Election Commission of India. Every Indian citizen should be eligible to vote," he said.

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Stating that "anti-nationals and illegal immigrants" should not be given the right to vote, he accused the Congress-led government in the state of "pressuring" the BLOs in enrolling certain ineligible people.

"We don't want anti-nationals, people from outside the country, and illegal immigrants to be given the voting right. I think the Congress government in Karnataka is provoking and pressurising these BLOs to illegally enrol immigrants to increase their vote share," he said.