Alleging large-scale rigging, Left parties demand repoll in Tirupati

Tirupati: Alleging large-scale rigging in most of the polling booths in Tirupati, the Left parties demanded re-polling in the pilgrim city. The Left parties CPM and CPI jointly staged a protest at Ambedkar statue opposite RTC Bus Station after the polling was over at 4 pm to press the Election Commission to order repoll in view of the rigging in most of the polling booths in the city. Speaking on the occasion, senior CPM leader Kandarapu Murali alleged that the police acted as more than the ruling party activists in supporting the YSRCP leaders resort to bogus voting in the booths and also unleashed force on the opposition party leaders and activists who resisted the bogus voting, clearing the line for the YSRCP leaders rigging in many booths.

The opposition party activists stiffly resisted bogus voting and in many booths thwarted the efforts of non-degree holders including women and auto-drivers trying to vote and forced them go away only to turn the ruling party leaders desperate and indulge in rigging from afternoon.

Without mincing words, Murali alleged that Tirupati MP Dr M Gurumoorthy, Chandragiri MLA and TUDA chairman Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy, Deputy Mayor Bhumana Abinay Reddy and party MLC candidate P Syam Prasad Reddy themselves led their followers and activists resort to rigging while the police and election officials remained silent spectators. He slammed the police who he said were unabashedly active in helping bogus voting and resorted to force against opposition party leaders and activists who tried to prevent bogus voting.

At the Girls High School polling centre in China Bazaar Street in the city, a woman polling officer was roughed by a ruling party leader who snatched the ballot paper from her and went on to cast bogus votes, he said.

At many polling stations, CPM and CPI leaders clashed with police when they found bogus voters at polling booths and for driving them away for questioning.

While in some booths the opposition party agents were sent away after they objected to bogus voting. At the polling booth (No.223), BJP state spokesperson Samanchi Srinivas was taken into custody and shifted to East police station.

The BJP leader said police took him into custody after he prevented YSRCP leaders from resorting to rigging at the booth and criticised the police for acting in most undemocratic manner. Tension prevailed for some time at about 20 polling centres after the opposition party activists entered into a heated altercation with police after they were driven out while trying to check bogus voters. Meanwhile, the polling for the MLC elections held in the city witnessed many interesting incidents.

A young woman who came for voting at a booth in Korlagunta was questioned by the CPM activists suspecting her a bogus voter, leading to the woman admitting that she studied up to 10th class. The video of the woman posted on social media went viral but in no way restrained bogus voting in the city which is having 38,000 graduate voters.