New Delhi, Oct 7: Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday said that Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi had been “relentlessly exposing” what he described as a “vote chori conspiracy”, and criticised the registration of an FIR following the Opposition’s protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

In a post on X, Ramesh said, “For almost two years now, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has been relentlessly exposing, through factual evidence, the Vote Chori conspiracy hatched between the PM & the HM on one side and the CEC on the other.”

He alleged that “crores of genuine voters” had lost their constitutional right to vote through what he called the “atrocious process of SIR – Shahenshah Instigated Removal”.

Ramesh further said that when Rahul Gandhi adopted the method of “Satyagraha” to highlight what the Congress described as injustices arising from SIR, the Delhi Police registered an FIR against him and other leaders.

“And when the LOP-LS adopts the method of satyagraha to highlight the injustices of SIR, the Delhi Police registers an FIR against him and other leaders.”

“The diabolical duo is nervous, rattled and desperate. The writing on the wall is clear,” Ramesh said in his post.

His remarks came after Rahul Gandhi and Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were booked along with others in connection with their entry into the Akashwani Bhawan premises during Tuesday’s Opposition protest. The police case followed the INDIA bloc’s march from Parliament towards the Election Commission headquarters, during which the protesters were stopped near Akashwani Bhawan.

The Gandhi siblings and other INDIA bloc leaders were subsequently detained by the Delhi Police after they remained at the premises for several hours. They were later released.

The leaders had forcibly entered and gathered on the Akashwani Bhawan campus after being prevented from proceeding towards the Election Commission office. Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other Opposition leaders staged a sit-in on the premises, demanding action on the electoral-roll revision exercise and seeking the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

According to reports, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were among those who forcibly entered the premises through the reception gate and later sat under a tree. Police personnel asked the protesters to vacate the area, but the leaders continued their sit-in.

Hyderabad, Oct 7: Election authorities in Telangana have intensified investigation into false Form-7 applications seeking deletion of voters from the electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), even as Hyderabad Police have booked a booth-level agent (BLA) of the BJP for allegedly submitting 30 pre-printed Form-7 applications.

S. Balachander, a Booth Level Agent (BLA) of the BJP in Musheerabad constituency in Hyderabad, has been booked for submitting pre-printed Form-7 applications seeking deletion of voters from the electoral roll at a polling station.

A case under Sections 217 and 318(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, has been registered against him at Chikkadpally Police Station.

This followed a complaint lodged by T. Praveen Kumar, Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) of the Musheerabad Assembly constituency.

The ERO complained that Balachander brought 30 digitally pre-printed Form-7 applications to Polling Station No. 210 on September 28. The applications sought the deletion of the names of 30 electors, including a Congress BLA and his family members, from the electoral roll.

Balachander, who had signed the forms, tried to submit them to the Booth Level Officer (BLO) at the polling station. When the BLO refused to receive the bulk submission and did not issue any acknowledgement for the 30 forms, Balachander left the forms at the polling station premises before the BLO and left the place.

After the verification, election authorities found that all 30 electors whose names were mentioned in the Form-7 applications were residing at the respective premises recorded in the electoral records.

This was the first case filed in Telangana after Chief Electoral Officer C. Sudharsan Reddy, on October 5, ordered action against applicants who knowingly made false statements of declaration in Forms 6, 6A, 7 & 8 under provisions of Section 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. The CEO had asked DEOs to conduct an inquiry under Rule 20 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, before taking the action.

Similar pre-printed forms had surfaced in the Bahadurpura and Goshamahal constituencies in Hyderabad. All the names mentioned in the forms were Muslims, leading to allegations about a deliberate attempt to target the community.

After Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) lodged a complaint, the CEO issued an order to the Commissioner of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, the District Election Officer, Hyderabad and all collectors and DEOs of districts across the state to “take appropriate action” against individuals found knowingly filing false claims or declarations in electoral-roll forms.

Election authorities across Telangana have received 28,753 Form-7 applications, including around 5,000 from Hyderabad.

TPCC electoral office had filed a complaint with the Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad, seeking FIRs over alleged misuse of Form 7s.

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) on Tuesday complained to the Chief Electoral Officer of Telangana, Sudharsan Reddy, regarding the misuse of Form 7 for the targeted deletion of Muslim voters in the Goshamahal Assembly constituency.

In a letter to the CEO, AIMIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi complained that at polling station number 28, one Thudumu Janardhan submitted 122 Form 7 applications. In these forms, the names of the voters against whom deletion is sought are pre-printed, while the applicant has written his own name and contact number as the person filing the Form 7, he said.

Owaisi alleged that there is a deep conspiracy to delete Muslim voters through fraudulent and bulk submission of Form 7 applications.

The Claims and Objections phase of the SIR process will end on October 7, and the deadline for disposal is November 5. Final electoral rolls will be published on November 9, 2026.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever on Wednesday congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25 years of continuous leadership in government and expressed readiness to deepen the partnership between India and Belgium.

In his congratulatory message, Wever described his recent visit to India as “productive.”

In a post on X, Wever stated, “I warmly congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25 years of continuous leadership in government, from Gujarat to New Delhi. Following my productive visit to India last month, I look forward to further deepening the strong partnership between our two countries.”

Bart De Wever’s statement comes as PM Modi marks 25 years of uninterrupted leadership as head of government, beginning with his oath as Gujarat Chief Minister on October 7, 2001, and continuing through three terms as Prime Minister of India.

In October 2001, PM Modi was chosen to replace Keshubhai Patel as Gujarat Chief Minister at a difficult time for the state, which was still dealing with the aftermath of the devastating Bhuj earthquake as well as political and administrative challenges. He remained Chief Minister until 2014 before moving to national politics.

PM Modi’s tenure as India’s Prime Minister has been marked by an expanded international profile for the country, with the government pursuing greater diplomatic engagement, stronger relations with major powers and a prominent role for India in the Global South.

Last month, Bart De Wever was on an official visit to India. It was his first visit to India after assuming office in February last year and also the first visit by a Belgian PM to India in two decades.

During his visit to India, Wever reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral ties with PM Modi during their bilateral talks at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi. The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further deepen the partnership between India and Belgium while also discussing regional and global issues of mutual interest.

“The two leaders reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral relations, with a focus on defence, trade, investment, innovation, semiconductors, fintech, critical minerals, people-to-people ties, and academic and research cooperation. They also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest and reaffirmed their commitment to further deepen the close and multifaceted India-Belgium partnership,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) posted on X.

PM Modi and PM Bart De Wever witnessed the exchange of Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) in the field of defence, renewable energy, combating crime and establishing diplomatic training between the two nations. The two sides agreed to double the bilateral trade in next five years, establish a business forum, an investment forum and a consular dialogue, the MEA stated.