Lok Sabha Elections 2024: As phase 4 of the Lok Sabha elections is underway, a BJP candidate from Hyderabad Madhavi Latha reached the polling booth in her constituency and checked the voter IDs of the Muslim women by removing the burqa for verification. Latha visited the polling booth no 122 at Azampur in the constituency.
In the video, the BJP candidate can be seen asking Muslim women inside the booth to remove the Burkha and identify themselves along with checking their voter identity cards.
Case registered against BJP candidate
A case has been registered against BJP's candidate Latha after a video clip of her checking the voter ID cards of Muslim women during her visit to a polling booth went viral.
The case has been registered under sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act. Hyderabad, Collector in a post on X wrote, "A case is registered in Malakpet Police Station against Smt Madhavi Latha, contesting candidate, BJP under sections 171C, 186, 505(1)(c) of IPC and Section 132 of the Representation of the People Act."
Watch video here:
Here's what she said
Speaking about the video, the BJP leader said that she had only requested the women to verify their identity and there was nothing wrong with this. "I am a candidate. As per law candidate has the right to check the ID cards without the facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humbleness, I have only requested them - can I please see and verify with the ID cards? If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, that means they are scared," she said.
Earlier in the day, Madhavi Latha had alleged discrepancies in the voter list in her constituency.
Madhavi Latha said, "The Police personnel seem very dull, they are not active...They are not checking anything. Senior citizen voters are coming here but their names are deleted from the list. A few of them are residents of Goshamahal but their names are in the list of Rangareddy."
Earlier, the BJP candidate voted at a polling booth in the constituency. She is pitted against MP and AIMIM candidate Asaduddin Owaisi and BRS' Gaddam Srinivas Yadav from this high-profile seat.
CM Revanth Reddy responds
On being asked about a video where BJP candidate Madhavi Latha is seen checking the IDs of voters, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy says "I have not seen (the video) but BJP is simply trying to polarise Muslim votes to win but all these issues are going to help Asaduddin Owaisi. It is not going to benefit BJP..."
Lok Sabha elections Phase 4
Polling for the 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana was underway. Polling which began at 7 am will end by 6 pm, barring at a few places where it will conclude two hours earlier.
As many as 625 candidates, including Union Minister and Telangana BJP chief Kishan Reddy, Bandi Sanjay Kumar and senior leader Etala Rajender are among the saffron party's candidates while the Congress has fielded among others, BRS turncoats Danam Nagender and K Kavya.
Asaduddin Owaisi is seeking re-election from the party's bastion- Hyderabad- and is pitted against BJP's Madhavi Latha, a political novice, who ran a spirited campaign. Former IPS officer RS Praveen Kumar and sitting MP Nama Nageswar Rao, among others, are in the poll fray from former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao-led BRS.
