Tirupati MP seeks removal of DIG, two SPs from civic poll duty

Tirupati: Pressing for a level playing field as urban local body election process resumes, Tirupati MP Maddila Gurumoorthy has asked the authorities to guarantee police protection for candidates and to remove a DIG and two Superintendents of Police, whose conduct, he alleges, undermined nomination process.

Speaking to The Hans India on his representation to the President, the Governor, the Chief Justice of India, Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission, Union Department of Personnel and Training and the Union Home Secretary, the MP said that he sought a comprehensive and impartial inquiry and action against those found responsible.

Gurumoorthy demanded for impartial monitoring of sensitive locations and swift action against any intimidation once the election process restarts. If violations by the officers are established, he said, corrective and disciplinary steps should follow, including removal from election duties wherever warranted.

The representation named DIG Dr Koya Praveen, Annamayya SP Dheeraj Kunubilli and Kadapa SP Shelke Nachiket Vishwanath. Gurumoorthy has accused them of inaction, bias and failing to prevent violence and the obstruction of candidates during nominations. He wants their election-related duties, postings and supervisory responsibilities examined.

The MP cited the alleged attack on Rajampet MP PV Midhun Reddy at Punganur. He pointed out that YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) candidates could not file even one nomination there. He also asked for an inquiry into complaints of violence, intimidation and obstruction during nominations in Pulivendula, Kamalapuram, Kadapa, Yerraguntla, Rajampet, Rayachoti, Badvel, Mydukur and Proddatur, across Kadapa and Annamayya districts.

Gurumoorthy asked that nomination records from the municipalities of Kamalapuram, Badvel, Rajampet, Yerraguntla and Punganur be examined along with complaints that candidates were stopped from contesting. He also sought an inquiry into allegedly derogatory and provocative remarks about Midhun Reddy attributed to Koya Praveen, which reportedly circulated on social media.

Gurumoorthy asked Supreme Court to examine whether an Election Commission communication dated April 9, 2019, and the State government’s GO Rt No 815 of April 10, 2019, on Koya Praveen’s transfer apply in this case.

As part of an independent probe into the incidents and the officers’ conduct, the MP called for CCTV footage, video recordings, complaints, FIRs, police deployment records and duty rosters to be preserved and examined.

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Pradeep Vennelakanti

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