Amaravati, Oct 21 (PTI) The YSRCP State Coordinator S Ramakrishna Reddy on Wednesday alleged that 76 violent incidents have occurred across 11 districts during ZPTC and MPTC election nominations, including “attacks, arrests, house confinement, threats and destruction of nomination papers”.
The YSRCP leader claimed that YSR Kadapa district has witnessed 22 such incidents, followed by Palnadu (18), Annamayya and Tirupati (11 each) while the remaining happened across seven districts, he said in a party press release.
He noted that his party will furnish these details to the Supreme Court and seek transfers or removal from election duties of “officials responsible”.
Municipal nomination obstruction, arbitrary rejection during scrutiny and threats forcing withdrawals were now recurring in local body elections, he claimed.
Ramakrishna Reddy alleged that several candidates withdrew under police pressure and threats of fabricated narcotics and other criminal cases.
Further, he also welcomed the Supreme Court’s intervention in Andhra Pradesh’s local bodies elections and demanded that the State Election Commission exercise its powers, protect candidates and remove officials allegedly serving the ruling party.
Today, Andhra Pradesh State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha deferred polls in 19 municipalities across seven districts, citing Supreme Court orders.
Meanwhile, the TDP claimed in a post on X that the coalition government had already “anticipated that Jagan (YSRCP supremo) would create chaos and destruction” during the local bodies polls.
“The government had already anticipated that Jagan would create chaos and destruction in the areas of YCP (YSRCP) leaders like Avinash Reddy, Mithun Reddy, Peddireddy, and others to disrupt the elections. That’s why it took some precautions and was able to control the riots,” said TDP.
It was only Jagan who went to the Supreme Court, citing the very “destruction he orchestrated” as evidence, demanding that the elections be stopped, the ruling party claimed.
TDP also accused YSRCP of having a culture of “unleashing thugs who attack TDP candidates who came to file nominations in Punganur with iron rods and stones, spilling blood, questioning, “why such fear of elections?”
Jagan fears that he might face the same defeat in the local body elections as the verdict delivered by the people in the previous general elections, TDP claimed.
“That’s why, to stall the elections, he got some cases filed accusing no to BC reservations, and some saying elections should be held only after the census process is completed…”
In this way, he got around 60 cases filed.
“Nevertheless, the elections didn’t stop… The BC reservations didn’t stop either,” TDP added. PTI STH ADB
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