Overview
- Investigators say the same data centre used in Aland was also used to manipulate rolls in at least two other Kalaburagi constituencies, with one report citing about 35,000 names affected in Gulbarga City, largely from minority communities.
- Staff at the centre were reportedly paid Rs 80 per online application, with the operation linked to Mohammed Ashfaq and Md Akram; Ashfaq was questioned in 2023 and later moved to Dubai.
- The probe has traced payments routed via a Kalaburagi accountant to the operators, and investigators have seized the accountant’s laptop, with Hindustan Times reporting two laptops now under forensic examination.
- Officials describe near-instant access to the Election Commission portal using more than 3,000 fake phone numbers, with sources also pointing to voice-over-internet systems used to file mass deletions.
- In Aland, the SIT says it has key evidence to prosecute after 6,018 deletion attempts yielded only 24 valid cases, while officials signal a focus on two more seats even as other reporting notes the team’s formal mandate remains limited.