Shobha Karandlaje urges Amit Shah to stop Karnataka voter certificate order
Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje has requested Union Home Minister Amit Shah to intervene and halt the Karnataka government's initiative to issue Permanent Residence Certificates (PRCs) to long-term residents in Bengaluru and across the state for voter enrollment.
The Congress-led Karnataka state government issued the PRC order on June 29, two days after the Election Commission of India (ECI) commenced its door-to-door voter enumeration process as part of its Special Intensive Revision. The state's door-to-door verification process concludes on July 29, with draft electoral rolls scheduled for publication on August 5.
In a letter to Shah, Karandlaje raised serious constitutional, legal, and national security concerns regarding the state's notification. She argued that the introduction of the PRC seeks to create a separate category of 'permanent residents' without any constitutional or statutory authority.
According to Karandlaje, who serves as the Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment, individuals who have entered India illegally or are residing unlawfully in Karnataka could obtain these certificates through local documents or fraudulent means. She warned that the certificates could be used to secure state benefits, government documents, educational admissions, and employment, which would legitimise illegal residence and hinder federal efforts to identify illegal immigrants.
The Karnataka government's June 29 order stated that the purpose of the PRCs is to establish a uniform, transparent, and legally sustainable framework to prove residential status. The additional documentation was intended to prevent the large-scale elimination of voters from electoral rolls due to a lack of proof of residence.
Under the state's guidelines, PRCs are granted to applicants who can prove birth in Karnataka, continuous parental or guardian residence for 10 years, or 10 years of study in the state. Local ward offices in urban local bodies and gram panchayats are designated to set up help desks to facilitate these applications.
While migrant rights groups have welcomed the initiative, they have also questioned whether the ECI will officially recognise the PRC as a valid document for voter registration. Karandlaje has urged the Union Government to direct Karnataka to keep the implementation of the notification in abeyance.
