Bengaluru election authorities have clarified that Bharat Ratna awardee and scientist Professor C.N.R. Rao was not issued a notice over a spelling discrepancy in the draft electoral roll and that steps are being taken to include his correct details in the final voter list.
The clarification followed reports that Rao’s name appeared as “Proff C N R Rao” in the draft roll prepared during the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The additional letter reportedly led to a mismatch being identified in the records and prompted public concern that the 92-year-old scientist had been asked to respond to an official notice.
Maheshwar Rao, Bengaluru City District Election Officer and Chief Commissioner, said no notice had been issued to the scientist. According to the clarification reported by Vijay Karnataka, officials visited Rao’s residence and provided enumeration forms to him and his family as part of the revision process. The required information was collected during the visit.
The officials also clarified that Rao remains enrolled in the Malleshwaram Assembly constituency. In the 2002 electoral roll, he was listed in Part 129 of the then 76-Malleshwaram constituency at serial number 431, with his name recorded as “Ram”. In the current electoral records, he is listed in Part 59 of the 157-Malleshwaram constituency at serial number 187 under the name “Professor C.N.R. Rao M”.
The discrepancy in the draft roll was linked to differences in the way his name appeared across electoral records. Authorities said the booth-level officer did not issue a notice and instead recommended that Rao’s name be included in the final electoral roll after the necessary verification and data collection.
The episode comes as Karnataka undertakes a revision of its electoral rolls, a process through which voter details are checked and updated. Draft-roll discrepancies can involve spelling, addresses, constituency changes or differences between current and older records. The authorities’ clarification was intended to distinguish the reported spelling error from the issuance of a formal notice.
Rao received the Bharat Ratna in 2014 and is widely recognised for his work in materials chemistry. His name was included in the draft electoral roll despite the spelling variation, and officials said the required action would be taken to ensure his details are carried into the final list.
The next step is completion of the electoral-roll revision and publication of the final list with the corrected entry, according to the district election authorities.
