Published Sep 09, 2026 | 7:14 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 09, 2026 | 7:14 PM
Bharat Ratna Prof. CNR Rao.
Synopsis: Bharat Ratna winner and scientist Prof CNR Rao and Padma Shri awardee Harekala Hajabba are among several prominent Karnataka residents whose electoral entries have thrown up discrepancies during the Special Intensive Revision. Along with Shivarajkumar, Nandan Nilekani and Nikhil Kamath, their cases highlight name mismatches, unmapped records and other verification issues emerging in an exercise affecting lakhs of voters.
Kannada actor Shivarajkumar, Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani and Zerodha co-founders Nikhil Kamath and Nithin Kamath are among prominent Bengaluru residents whose names have figured in discrepancy lists generated during Karnataka’s ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Reports show that Shivarajkumar and Nilekani were classified as “Unmapped with Last SIR”, while Kamath was flagged for a “Parent Name Mismatch.”
The SIR exercise has also drawn attention to cases involving Bharat Ratna scientist CNR Rao, Padma Shri awardee Harekala Hajabba and actor Prakash Raj, illustrating the range of issues that have emerged as election officials reconcile current electoral rolls with older records.
The notice lists Kannada actor Shivarajkumar as “Shivaraj Kumar MS” and categorises the discrepancy against his entry as “Unmapped with Last SIR.” His father’s name was recorded as “Late Muthuraj” — the real name of Kannada actor Dr Rajkumar — creating a mismatch during the mapping exercise.
Infosys co-founder Nilekani has been placed under the same category.
An unmapped case means election officials have not been able to establish the required link between an elector in the current roll and the corresponding voter or family entry in the previous 2002 SIR roll.
This needs a further verification process during which the elector can establish the link or provide supporting documentation.
Zerodha co-founders Nikhil Kamath and Nithin Kamath have been served a notice due to “Parent Name Mismatch”, indicating a discrepancy in parental details being compared during the SIR exercise.
Prof. Rao’s electoral entry also showed a discrepancy during the SIR, but Bengaluru District Election Officer and Chief Commissioner Maheshwar Rao has clarified that no notice was issued to him.
According to the official clarification, Rao was enrolled as a voter in the Malleshwaram Assembly Constituency in the 2002 electoral roll under the name “Rama”, while he is currently registered as “Prof. C. N. Rao M.”
The discrepancy was noticed during the revision exercise. However, the Block Level Officer recommended Rao’s inclusion in the final electoral roll without issuing a notice, “considering him to be a respected person,” the official statement said.
The administration also said the State SVEEP Nodal Officer and the Commissioner of the Bengaluru West City Corporation personally delivered Enumeration Forms to Rao and his family members at their residence, and the required information was filled in.
Necessary action has since been initiated to include Rao’s name in the final electoral roll, the clarification said.
Padma Shri awardee and educationist Harekala Hajabba also faced a discrepancy in how his name appeared in older and current records.
His name was recorded simply as “Hajabba” in the 2002 electoral roll, while his present records carry the name “Harekala Hajabba.”
The mismatch led to a notice being issued to him as part of the verification exercise, before election officials subsequently visited him to address the discrepancy.
The cases underline an important distinction in the SIR process.
A voter appearing on a discrepancy list, a notice being generated, a notice actually being served, and a voter’s name being deleted from the roll are not necessarily the same thing.
In some cases, officials may resolve discrepancies through BLO-level verification without requiring the voter to attend a hearing.
This distinction became particularly relevant in Rao’s case, where officials identified a discrepancy but issued no notice, and in Prakash Raj’s case, where officials rejected his claim that his name had been deleted.
Actor Prakash Raj had earlier alleged that his name had been deleted from Bengaluru’s electoral roll during the SIR exercise.
In a video released in August, Raj said he was among voters whose voting rights had been removed despite being born, educated, and having lived in Bengaluru.
The Bengaluru Central City Corporation, however, disputed the claim and said Raj’s name had not been deleted.
According to the corporation, his name remained registered at Serial No. 970 in Part No. 1 of the Shanthinagar Assembly constituency electoral roll as on June 16, when the electoral data was frozen for the SIR exercise.
Raj later also participated in protests in Bengaluru against the SIR exercise, alongside activists and other public figures.
As of 4 September, the Chief Electoral Officer’s office said 43,81,141 notices had been generated for voters falling under no-mapping and anomaly categories. Of these, 7,31,770 had been delivered, while 36,49,371 remained pending delivery.
Electoral Registration Officers and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers are conducting hearings to examine cases where voters could not be mapped to previous records or where discrepancies have emerged in details such as names, ages, and relationships.
