On May 20, an unusual case of fraudulent voting involving the misuse of burqas was exposed in Bihar’s Darbhanga district. Four individuals, all Muslims, were arrested by the police. Those arrested include three women all above 18 years old and one teenage man aged 19. These individuals were caught with forged documents, and some attempted to cast their votes twice, as discovered by the presiding officer at the polling booth.
The incident took place during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, with voting for the Madhubani Lok Sabha seat occurring on May 20, 2024. This was part of the fifth phase of the elections, which included two assembly constituencies in Darbhanga district: Jale and Kevti. The fraudulent activity was detected at the Hakkania Madrasa Deora Bandhauli polling station, located within the Jale police station area.
According to the First Information Report (FIR Number: 103/2024) registered on May 20, 2024, at the Jale Police Station, sector officer Nirbhay Kumar apprehended the four individuals and placed them into police custody. The individuals arrested for fraudulent voting were identified as: 1) Sanaullah, son of Parvez Alam, 2) Sadia Sheikh, daughter of Mohammad Hasan, 3) Saleha Fatima, daughter of Mohammad Hasnain, and 4) Zeenat Parveen, daughter of Mohammad Izrah. All are residents of Deora Bandhauli in the Jale police station area, Darbhanga district.
All these accused were caught as they lined up to cast their votes twice.
The accused were charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including IPC sections 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 171D (personation at an election), and 171B (bribery). Sector officer Nirbhay Kumar handed all four individuals over to the police following their apprehension.
According to a statement recorded in another FIR (number 104/2024) by Investigating Officer Bipin Bihari, he had brought the accused to the Sirista Police Station for interrogation, which was conducted in the presence of women officers. Around 11 PM, a large mob gathered outside the police station, causing a commotion. The mob argued with the police, claiming, “Our people have been arrested for no reason.” When informed about the false voting allegations, the mob became aggressive. They forcefully entered the police station, misbehaved with women constables Reema Kumari and Preeti Kumari, and freed the arrested individuals.
They forcibly freed the four fake voters from Jale police station at 2 AM and celebrated. The mob also created a ruckus in the station, and several people were seen celebrating. The police were outnumbered and could do nothing as the crowd took away the four fake voters.
बुर्का और फर्जी वोट…
बिहार (दरभंगा): 20 May को हक्कानिया #मदरसा मतदान केंद्र से एक युवक #मोहम्मद सनाउल्लाह और 3 #मुस्लिम युवतियों को #बुर्का पहन कर #फर्जी वोटिंग करते हुए गिरफ़्तार किया था। सभी आरोपियों को दरभंगा के जाले थाना में रखा गया था।
बाद में जाले थाना पर देर रात करीब… pic.twitter.com/6PCTxNz0et
— Nishant Azad/निशांत आज़ाद🇮🇳 (@azad_nishant) May 22, 2024
The attackers who stormed the police station have been identified as Mohammad Karnain Alam, Tareeq Anwar, Mohammad Sitare, Rizvi Sheikh, Faizi, Faizal Ashraf, Safiullah, Ishtekar, Arsi, Muzakkir Khan, Mohammad Ali, Shaifuddin, Arzoo, Mohammad Shadab, Mohammad Hussain, Khadim Hussain, Mohammad Riyaz, Nisar Qureshi, Mohammad Uzer, Mohammad Zubair, Sanaullah, Sadiya Sheikh, Saleha Fatima, Zeenat Parvin, and others.
All the 24 named individuals, along with 130 others involved, have been booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including IPC sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with a deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension), 225 (resistance or obstruction to lawful apprehension of another person), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 333 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 354B (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to disrobe), and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace).
Shortly after the arrest of the four individuals, local residents caused a commotion at the police station, but the police managed to handle the situation initially. Later that night, a second attack was launched by a crowd of 130–140 people. Before the police could respond effectively, the crowd broke into the station and freed the four accused. This incident is clearly visible in the viral footage, which shows a large crowd marching towards the Police Station.
Darbhanga SSP Jagunath Reddy confirmed the incident, stating that 24 individuals have been named in the case, and an FIR has been filed against 130 unidentified people. Videos and other evidence related to the incident are being investigated. The case is now under investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by the SP of Darbhanga.
Cases where Muslims used burqa to cast fake votes
In a similar incident reported in Bihar’s Sitamarhi on May 20, during the fifth phase of voting for the Sitamarhi Lok Sabha seat, two women were taken into custody for voting fraudulently at booth number 247 in Marpa Kachor village, Sonbarsa block, Sitamarhi district. Both women were wearing burqas. Local residents apprehended them and handed them over to the police. Security personnel at the polling centre removed the burqa from one of the women to verify her identity and discovered that the person she was impersonating lived in another city. However, no district administration official confirmed the detention of the women.
In another incident on May 21, in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad, a case of creating a fake vote for an eighth-grade student led to a police report being filed against the girl’s father, BLO Sanad Khan, and a Shiksha Mitra, who has since been dismissed. The student attempted to vote at a booth in the Kundarki assembly area during the third phase of voting in the Sambhal Lok Sabha constituency. A case was registered against the girl’s father and other officials for facilitating the fake vote. The BLO was suspended, and the Shiksha Mitra was dismissed. A video of this incident also went viral.
In a similar incident, BJP workers staged a protest outside a polling booth in Indore-3 during the Lok Sabha polls, alleging fake voting. The activists claimed that 100 burqa-clad women had gathered to cast fake votes and demanded thorough checking. However, the police took no action and pacified the protesters, sending them back.
Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, is known for being a highly sensitive district where accusations of fraudulent voting are common. In preparation for the Lok Sabha elections, Sambhal police took significant measures. They summoned around half a dozen Muslim women to the police station who had been accused of attempting to vote fraudulently while wearing burqas in previous elections. The Circle Officer (CO) issued a stern warning to these women, stating that strict action would be taken against them under the Gangster Act if they were caught engaging in fraudulent voting again.
On May 13, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate K Madhavi Latha from Hyderabad stirred controversy when a video surfaced showing her checking the identity cards of burqa-clad Muslim women at a polling booth, instructing them to lift or remove their veils. A case was later filed against her. Following her own voting at Amrita Vidyalaya, Latha visited several polling booths and halted at Azampur to scrutinize the IDs of women awaiting their turn to vote. She also directed polling officials to permit voting only after thorough ID verification. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, led by incumbent MP Asaduddin Owaisi, lodged a complaint against her with the Election Commission of India (ECI).
Calls for ‘Vote Jihad’
On May 20th, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress during a campaign rally in Jhargram, West Bengal. He accused the party of planning to seize property and allocate it to individuals involved in ‘Vote Jihad’, a term he used to describe fraudulent voting practices.
Addressing another rally for the BJP, Modi warned against the intentions of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress in Uttar Pradesh. He cautioned voters that although these parties may solicit their votes, they would ultimately reward supporters of ‘Vote Jihad’ once in power. Modi highlighted the Congress’s pledge to investigate property ownership, suggesting that they would distribute part of citizens’ property to their electoral base.
The term ‘Vote Jihad’ gained attention after Samajwadi Party functionary and Congress leader Salman Khurshid’s niece, Maria Alam, used it at a rally on April 29 in favour of the I.N.D.I Alliance candidate from the Farrukhabad Lok Sabha seat, Naval Kishore Shakya. Since then, Modi has consistently criticised the opposition over this issue.
Calls for ‘Vote Jihad’ emerged in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, with leaders from the Muslim Personal Law Board and Kul Jamat-e-Tanzeem urging Muslim voters to defeat Modi and the BJP. They called for strategic voting to support candidates best positioned to defeat the BJP, regardless of party affiliation. Modi framed this choice as between ‘Vote Jihad’ and Ram Rajya, emphasising his aim to secure 400 Lok Sabha seats to counter the designs of Congress and its allies.
Allegations surfaced from Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister, Devendra Fadnavis, claiming that mosques and religious gatherings were mobilizing against the BJP and Modi. He demanded an investigation by the Election Commission into religious appeals targeting the BJP. A video on social media showed a Muslim meeting in Pune, convened by Kul Jamaati-e-Tanzim, advocating support for Maha Vikas Aghadi candidates to oppose the BJP and its allies.
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