New Delhi:
Rahul Dravid, the former India cricket team captain and one of the best batsmen during his 16-year career, was Karnataka’s election icon when the 2018 Assembly Elections were held there. However, in an ironic twist, Karnataka’s election icon cannot vote in the 2019 Lok Sabha Polls. The reason – A change of address. Dravid, who moved from the old constituency of Indiranagar to Ashwathnagar in RMV Extension, got his name deleted from the Shantinagar Assembly constituency but his name was not added in the new constituency before the deadline for the Lok Sabha Polls which was on March 16.
The confusion arose when Rahul Dravid’s brother, Vijay, submitted Form 7 which was meant for deletion of names from the list during a special drive carried out by the Election Commission of India. The form was submitted but another document, Form 6 which was to add his name in the new electoral roll from the new place, could not be submitted by the former cricketer.
In a report in Times of India, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad, who is also the District Election Officer, clarified that Form 7 meant for deletion can be submitted by family members but Form 6 for inclusion in the electoral rolls can only be submitted by the voter concerned. Speaking to The News Minute, Additional Chief Electoral Officer KN Ramesh added that Dravid had to submit the form before March 16 but now nothing can be done. Another election official remarked that the officers visited Dravid’s house twice but were not allowed inside.
Karnataka will vote in two phases during the 2019 Lok Sabha Polls. Half of the state will vote in the second phase which is on April 18 and the rest of the state will vote on April 23. Bangalore and its constituencies, where Dravid is currently based, will vote on April 18.
The former India captain retired in 2012 and he has 13288 runs at an average of 52 in Tests while he has 10889 runs in ODIs. His highest score in Tests is 270 which he hit against Pakistan in Rawalpindi and it helped India secure a Test win for the first time in the country.
