BENGALURU: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged voter theft in Aland has written to Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Karnataka, requesting for details such as device ports, IP addresses and OTP trails that were reportedly used for filing 6,018 Form 7 applications for deletion of names from the voters’ list of Aland constituency between February 2022 and February 2023. “The SIT is awaiting a reply from the CEO,” sources told the TNIE.
Even as the SIT is awaiting a response from the CEO, its use of Internet Protocol Detail Record (IPDR), an important digital forensic tool to gather intelligence, has reportedly come in use in unearthing digital footprints of suspects, the data operators, who may have been behind the racket.
The trail has led the team to a call centre in Kalaburagi with Mohammed Akram as the alleged brain behind the attempt to manipulate voter data in the Kalaburagi region.
Akram, with his associate Ashfaq and four others have so far reportedly emerged as the key players behind the filing of 6,018 applications for voter deletion at a payment of Rs 80 for each such application.
“The SIT investigation has unravelled that 75 mobile phones - of people from divergent backgrounds mostly from lower to middle income groups – were used for online applications to the EC. The team is investigating the mode and source of payment. It may be a challenge to unearth the money trail if it was paid in cash,” said sources.
The SIT has to investigate and establish who had approached the four suspects and how did they zero in on 6,018 voters whose names were fraudulently used to file Form 7 to the Election Commission for deletion of names from the electoral roll.