Bharatiya Janata Party candidates in Karnataka Tejasvi Surya and K Sudhakar have been booked in separate cases relating to alleged undue influence on voters, the Election Commission said on Friday.

While Surya is the Hindutva party’s candidate for the Bangalore South constituency, Sudhakar has been fielded from Chikkballapur. Surya is the sitting MP from Bangalore South. Both constituencies went to polls in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on Friday.

A case has been registered against Surya for posting a video on social media platform X and soliciting votes on the grounds of religion, the poll panel said. The case under section 123(3) of the Indian Penal Code was registered on Thursday at the Jayanagar Police Station.

It was not immediately clear for which social media post Surya had been booked.

The Election Commission also said that its officials had seized Rs 4.8 crore from the Chikkballapur Lok Sabha constituency on Thursday, after which a first information report was registered against Sudhakar.

A case was filed against Sudhakar for bribery and undue influence on electors, Karnataka’s chief electoral officer said. The case was registered at the Madanayakahalli Police Station under sections of the 1951 Representation of the People Act and the Indian Penal Code.

A team led by Munish Moudgil, Bengaluru Urban district’s nodal officer for implementing the Model Code of Conduct, had received a phone call about the money that was allegedly meant for distribution and misuse in the elections, The Hindu reported quoting unidentified officials. The location of the property where the cash had been stored was also shared with the officials.

Moudgil alerted the Income Tax Department after an order from the Election Commission. He then visited the property along with a flying squad, surveillance team and the district magistrate. On an order from the Election Commission, officials of the Income Tax Department searched the premises and seized the Rs 4.8 crore, The Hindu reported.