Hyderabad, Oct. 5 -- Amid furore over the alleged deletion of voter names in Telangana through Form 7, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on Monday, October 5, issued a crucial direction to all the District Election Officers (DEOs) in the state.

In a memo, CEO C. Sudharshan Reddy said his office had learnt that "there have been instances of filing of bulk applications in Form 7 before the EROs [Electoral Registration Officers], and it is also alleged that such forms are not genuine."

Keeping that in mind, the CEO asked all the DEOs to issue instructions that "the EROs shall take action against the applicants who have made knowingly false statements or declarations in writing in Forms 6, 6A, 7 and 8." This action, he said, would follow an...