SIR: No notice to Prof CNR Rao over name discrepancy, says GBA chief

Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) chief commissioner M. Maheshwar Rao on Wednesday, 9 September said no notice was issued to Bharat Ratna awardee Prof C.N.R. Rao in connection with the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, contradicting reports by news agency IANS and several media outlets that the eminent scientist had been summoned for a hearing over a discrepancy in his name.

The clarification came hours after reports said Rao (92) had been issued a notice citing a 'self-name mismatch' and asked to appear for a hearing in Malleshwaram. The reports said his name appeared as 'Prof CNR Rao' in the older electoral rolls but as 'Proff CNR Rao' in the current roll, with an additional 'f' in his professional title.

Rao's office, however, told NDTV that it had not received any notice either physically or by email, though the information appeared to have been uploaded on the Election Commission of India's website. A representative said the only apparent discrepancy was the additional 'f' in 'Proff'.

The GBA's clarification now gives a different account of the matter. It said a discrepancy had indeed been noticed in Rao's electoral-roll entry during the SIR exercise, but the booth-level officer (BLO) had not issued him any notice and instead recommended that his name be included in the final electoral roll.

'No notice has been issued to the Hon’ble Bharat Ratna (awardee) Prof C N (R) Rao in connection with the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in the Malleshwaram Assembly Constituency,' the GBA said in a statement, quoting Rao, who is also the district election officer of Bengaluru Urban.

As part of the SIR exercise, enumeration forms were delivered in person to Rao and his family members at their residence by the state SVEEP nodal officer, along with the commissioner of the Bengaluru West City Corporation. The required information was also duly filled in, the GBA said.

According to the authority, Rao was enrolled as a voter in part no. 129, serial no. 431 of the 76-Malleshwaram Assembly segment in the 2002 electoral roll, where his name was recorded as 'Rama'. He is currently registered in part no. 59, serial no. 187 of the 157-Malleshwaram Assembly segment under the name 'Prof CN Rao M'. His name has also been included in the draft electoral roll, it said.

The GBA said the discrepancy was noticed during the revision but that the BLO, 'without issuing any notice', recommended inclusion of Rao's name in the final electoral roll, considering him a 'respected person'. Necessary action has been initiated accordingly, it said.

The clarification comes after the initial reports drew attention to Rao's case, particularly because the alleged notice was said to have been triggered by a seemingly minor spelling discrepancy and required the 92-year-old Bharat Ratna awardee to establish his identity in person.

The two versions have not been reconciled so far: while the initial reports described a notice over an additional 'f' in 'Proff', the GBA's subsequent statement refers to discrepancies between Rao's older and current electoral-roll entries and maintains that no notice was issued.

Prof. Rao was not available for comment.

With PTI inputs