According to the reports, former Indian cricket captain Rahul Dravid, who was the Karnataka election icon during the 2018 Assembly elections, cannot vote in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections on April 18 as his name was deleted from the voters’ list but was not re-included.
Dravid has been the poster-boy of the state election commission, and hoardings with his appeal, ‘Cast your vote. Make democracy win’, dot the streets.
Rahul Dravid, who changed his house, got his name deleted in the old constituency in Indiranagar. However, his name was not added in the new constituency list before the deadline.
It was during a special drive carried out by the Election Commission that Rahul’s brother Vijay submitted Form 7 (for deletion of names from the list), as the cricketer had then not shifted to his new house in Ashwathnagar in RMV Extension.
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However, Dravid did not fill Form 6 meant to add his name in the electoral roll from his new place.
Mathikere sub-division assistant electoral returning officer Roopa told a leading publication that booth-level officers had visited Dravid’s new house, but were not allowed to inside. The officers were informed that the former Indian cricket captain was touring abroad. While the first draft of voters list was published in January, the final roll was published on March 16.
According to reports, Dravid came to know about the incident only after March 16 and then contacted the officials concerned. Domlur sub-division assistant electoral returning officer Basawaraju Magi said “I have told him if he still wants his name to be included in Shantinagar list, he needs to submit Form 6, which can be done once the EC allows it after April 23.”
The former India cricket captain had voted regularly in the past and was made Karnataka election commission’s icon and ambassador as he was politically neutral.
