Hyderabad's BJP Candidate Madhavi Latha Asks Burqa-Clad Women To Show Face In Polling Booth; Case Filed

A case has been filed at Malakpet Police Station in Hyderabad against BJP candidate Madhavi Latha. She was reported to have asked burqa-clad women to reveal their faces for identification purposes, matching them with their voter ID cards.

In the video clip shared by news agency ANI, the BJP's firebrand politician from Hyderabad is seen verifying the voter ID card of the Muslim women.

However, she defended her move by saying that she has the right to check the ID cards.

She told the news agency ANI: "I am a candidate. As per law, a candidate has the right to check ID cards without facemasks. I am not a man, I am a woman and with a lot of humility, I requested them. If somebody wants to make a big issue out of it, it means they are scared," she said.

The BJP leader has alleged discrepancies in the voters' list. "The police personnel seem very dull, they are not active. They are not checking anything. Senior citizen voters are coming here, but their names have been deleted from the list," she said.

Madhavi Latha further added, "90% of booths are compromised. Police do not want to instruct female constables to check the face with the voter ID. When I asked the police officer, he said it's not his responsibility..."

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, the sitting MP, faces off against Madhavi Latha in Hyderabad. Notably, this marks the first time the saffron party has nominated a female candidate for the Hyderabad seat.

The Congress has fielded Mohammad Waliullah Sameer, while the BRS has nominated Gaddam Srinivas Yadav for the Hyderabad seat.

All 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana have gone to polls on Monday in the fourth phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Till 1 pm, the state has registered 40.38 per cent voter turnout.