- Applications for residence certificates in Bihar included a cat named Cat Kumar with a cat's photo
- Nasriganj Revenue Officer filed a police complaint over false application details on July 29
- Similar fake applications included dogs, a tractor, and US President Donald Trump in Bihar
First, a couple of dogs, then US President Donald Trump and a Sonalika tractor; now a cat. Wondering what ties them all together? Applications for residence certificates in Bihar. Authorities in Rohtas district received an online application in the name of "Cat Kumar," son of "Catty Boss" and "Catiya Devi".
The application, with the address, Village Atimiganj, Ward 07, Post Mahadeva, Police Station Nasriganj, Pin 821310, also had a photograph of a cat.
Acting on the matter, Nasriganj Revenue Officer Kaushal Patel lodged a police complaint on July 29.
The complaint described the applicant's details as "clearly false and intended as a mockery," accusing the individual of misusing the online platform to obstruct government work.
Police have launched an investigation into how the system accepted the application and who was responsible.
This comes weeks after similar fiascos involving dogs. From rural Patna and Nawada, filings were made for "Dog Babu" and "Dogesh Babu," and an East Champaran application for "Sonalika Tractor" came with the photograph of a Bhojpuri actress.
An application was submitted from Samastipur for "Donald Trump" with the names of his real parents. Officials have also flagged requests in the names of a crow, "Ram-Sita," and other fictional or non-human entities.
This is one of many incidents in Bihar since the Election Commission began its statewide electoral roll revision on June 24. On August 1, the EC released draft rolls for all 90,712 polling booths across 243 constituencies, removing 65.6 lakh names and listing 7.24 crore electors. The Supreme Court has sought an explanation for the large-scale deletions.
Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi has also accused the Election Commission (EC) of helping the BJP carry out large-scale electoral fraud or "vote chori" (vote theft).
Presenting findings from a six-month investigation, Mr Gandhi alleged over one lakh fraudulent entries in the Mahadevapura assembly segment of Karnataka's Bengaluru Central constituency. He cited duplicate voter IDs, fake addresses, including entries such as "House Number 0", bulk registrations, invalid photographs, and misuse of Form 6 for first-time voters. In Bengaluru's Mahadevapura constituency, 80 voters were registered in a tiny 10-15 square foot house.
Mr Gandhi claimed the EC refused to release machine-readable voter lists and CCTV footage, which he said would expose the scale of manipulation. He presented proof of similar irregularities in Maharashtra and Haryana.
The EC has denied Mr Gandhi's allegations, calling them "misleading" and politically motivated. It has demanded that Gandhi submit evidence under oath, in line with the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, or issue a public apology.
