An FIR was registered against K Madhavi Latha, the BJP candidate for Hyderabad Lok Sabha, for violating the election code while verifying the identities of burqa clad Muslim women voters.
Several videos where she was seen demanding to see the faces of veiled women while matching their Epic cards and warning the presiding officer of a booth surfaced. The AIMIM also lodged a complaint against her with the ECI. Madhavi Latha is taking on four time MP Asaduddin Owaisi of AIMIM in Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat.
According to the ‘X’ handle of Collector, Hyderabad “A case is registered in Malakpet Police Station against Smt Madhavi Latha, contesting candidate, BJP under sections 17C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act,”.
In one of the videos that surfaced, the BJP candidate was seen checking the identities of burqa clad Muslim women waiting to vote. She even asked one of them to remove her veil which she did.
In another video she warned the poll official present in the booth saying “Facial identification is very important. If the election officials are not checking the faces of the voters I am going to lodge a complaint.” Later she complained “90 per cent of the booths were compromised,” while blaming the police for not checking the identity of veiled women voters.
However, the low turnout in Hyderabad was also a cause of worry. The BJP candidate even issued a video clip urging people quite forcefully to come out and vote. “ Let them make their move. It will not affect us. I am going around each and every booth. I will ensure you get justice everywhere. Come out. Vote. This is our right. You must vote and till now only 9 per cent have come out to vote and out of that not many belong to us.”
AIMIM leaders were also seen going around and knocking on doors, urging people to come out and vote.
Meanwhile, another BJP candidate Arvind Dharmapuri who is in the fray from Nizamabad was also seen objecting to veiled women voters in one of the booths in his constituency.
Another case was registered against BJP candidate Madhavi Latha in Mangalhat police station after she intervened to get two BJP men released from police. The duo was arrested for manipulating voters with a dummy EVM. She reached the police station and took away the two men and dummy EVM. She also faced protests from locals in Bibi Bazaar area after she forced burqa clad women to remove their veil in order to check identities.