Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday alleged a “criminal conspiracy” by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Sringeri assembly poll recounting, adding that the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader TD Rajegowda were tampered with during the recounting process. ‘Vote dacoity’, says Siddaramaiah as recount reverses Sringeri result The remarks came a day after a Karnataka high court-ordered recount overturned the 2023 election result in Sringeri, handing victory to BJP candidate DN Jeevaraj. The recount and reverification of postal ballots, conducted over the weekend, resulted in Jeevaraj defeating Congress legislator Rajegowda by 52 votes. “This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah told reporters, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Rajegowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S). He further alleged that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials. “This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” the …