‘Was doing my duty’: BLO who stopped bulk submission of pre-printed SIR Form 7s in Hyderabad

The video of this BLO rejecting the Form 7s went viral three days later, when Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) on Saturday released the video of pre-printed Form 7s of SIR surfacing in Hyderabad.

“I don’t know how that video went viral. I was only stating my point of view,” the BLO said. When asked whether he was scared to reject the forms, he said, “No, I was not. I was doing my duty”.

Form 7s are used by electors if they want to delete their own name or if to object to any other elector in their constituency. (Express Photo by Pavan Khengre/File)

He, however, did not want to be identified as he did not want “publicity for an act which was done as part of the BLO duty”.

TPCC released the video two days after they complained to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) “about apprehensions of a larger conspiracy to bulk delete voters” as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls 2026.

The forms, which the TPCC had accessed, had no names. “They were in the last stages of being filed by the BJP BLA,” a Congress source alleged.

In a press conference on Sunday, BJP state president N Ramchander Rao said his party’s BLAs have not submitted bulk Form 7s. “The Congress is spreading malicious propaganda against constitutional institutions like the Election Commission,” he added.

Form 7s are used by electors if they want to delete their own name or to object to any other elector in their constituency.

Similar instances

The first instance of bulk Form 7s in Hyderabad surfaced on October 1, 2026, in Musheerabad constituency. Pre-printed applications were allegedly filed by a BLA of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), seeking deletion of a total 31 electors, who included a Congress BLA and his family members. In another case, a pre-printed Form 7 surfaced in Bahadurpura constituency. This, too, was flagged by the TPCC.

“In the Goshamahal case, the BLO refused to accept the bulk pre-printed forms,” a TPCC leader told The Indian Express.

When asked about the complaints, Chief Electoral Officer Sudarshan Reddy’s office told The Indian Express that an inquiry into the matter is on. “If some are targeting people by filing bulk Form 7s, we will take strict action,” the CEO’s office said.

According to TPCC, as per the original plan of BJP BLAs, the forms were to be submitted only after October 1, to inundate the election authorities who are already under the weight of lakhs of pending hearings from the notice phase. The period for filing claims and objections comes to an end on October 7.

A TPCC source said, “If the CEO does not take action, we will approach the police. This is a matter of protecting people’s right to vote”.

Telangana BJP’s chief spokesperson NV Subhash told The Indian Express that bulk Form 7s are being submitted against “Rohingyas who are not citizens of the country”. He said, “Political parties, including the AIMIM, the Congress and the BRS are supporting enrolment of Rohingyas. There is nothing wrong in filing Form 7s to deny them voting rights.”

He said AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi should personally ensure that the Rohingyas don’t get voting rights in India. “If he is a true Indian, he should see to it,” Subhash said.

Earlier in the day, Owaisi, the MP from Hyderabad, said, “If false Form 7s are being filed, we appeal to the Election Commission to take action against those responsible for it. If this drama does not stop, remember: protests bigger than those at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar will take place on the roads and streets of Hyderabad…”