Karnataka: Returning Officer, Team Attacked And Robbed By Four Miscreants Before Milk Producers' Union Polls

The poll officers were headed to the spot of the election of the Hullenahalli milk producers’ cooperative society in Magadi Taluk in Karnataka's Ramanagara when they were attacked.

A Returning officer and his team in Magadi taluk of Ramanagara district were attacked by four men on their way to the polling booth for the election of the director of the Milk Producers’ Union in Ramanagara district on Wednesday. The miscreants also stole 250 ballot papers and two laptops. A case has been registered against the four for obstruction of government work and attempted murder, the Ramanagara superintendent of police (SP) Karthik Reddy said.

The attack took place near Hosapalya in Magadi Taluk on the Magadi-Kunigal road, according to the Hindustan Times.

According to officials the election for the director’s position in the Hullenahalli Milk Producer Cooperative Society was scheduled to take place on Wednesday. The Returning officer Usha and his team were on their way to oversee the election when they were ambushed by the gang. The miscreants waylaid their car and attacked the officials. The gang then forcibly took the ballot papers, two laptops and a mobile phone from the car.

While the returning officer tried to grab back the ballot papers, the gang managed to escape in a Santro car. They also hit a woman officer with their car, who was in front of the vehicle.

Following the incident, the election was suspended, reported The Indian Express.

“This is the first kind of incident in an election under the Magadi police limits. We have registered a case under section 393 (robbery) and 353 (obstructing to public servant to perform duty) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC),” Magadi deputy superintendent of police (SP) KM Praveen Kumar told HT, adding that they will nab the gang soon as they have identified them.