Bulk Form 7 applications seeking deletion of voters’ names during Karnataka’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) have prompted chief minister D.K. Shivakumar to seek a comprehensive probe, including a criminal investigation.

Shivakumar on Thursday said that BJP leaders and workers were submitting the forms at the direction of party leaders to seek the removal of names of minorities, poor people and Dalits from the electoral rolls. The chief minister said Congress leaders had handed over documents to him relating to cases in which Form 7 applications were filed fraudulently in their constituencies.

“There is a need for a comprehensive investigation and a criminal investigation within the framework of law into this matter,” Shivakumar said in a video message.

The Form 7 controversy has surfaced as Karnataka’s SIR enters its claims-and-objections stage. Recent reports have documented bulk applications seeking deletion of voters’ names in several constituencies, including Bhalki and Babaleshwar, with a large number of the targeted voters belonging to minority communities.

Shivakumar said the issue was not restricted to a handful of constituencies and cited Bhalki, represented by minister Eshwar Khandre, Mudigere, represented by Nayana Motamma, and Narasimharaja, represented by Tanveer Sait, among the constituencies where similar attempts had been reported.

“If this is happening in the constituencies of our MLAs, it indicates that a major conspiracy is taking place across the state,” he said.

He urged Booth Level Agents (BLAs), Booth Level Agents-2 (BLA-2s), legislators, party workers and voters to immediately share details of Form 7 applications seeking the deletion of their names or those of other voters with his office.

“I have a responsibility as the chief minister to protect your right to vote,” Shivakumar said.

The chief minister said he would meet election officials on Thursday and place before them documents and other information collected from across the state.

He also asked party functionaries and voters to provide details of the Form 7 applications so that the matter could be taken up with the Election Commission.

Under the SIR exercise, 1.08 crore of Karnataka’s 5.54 crore voters had been categorised in the ‘Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate and Others’ list, while notices over discrepancies had been issued to 43.81 lakh voters in the draft rolls, according to earlier reporting.

The controversy over Form 7 has intensified in recent days. Data released by the Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer showed a discrepancy between the number of Form 7 applications reflected in the draft electoral roll and a later set of figures shared by the office, prompting officials to say the numbers needed verification.