Chandrababu Naidu bats for ballot paper

Amaravati: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has decided to take his fight against the Election Commission of India to New Delhi not only to submit a memorandum to the EC registering his strong protest against the "deliberate failure" of the Commission in conducting elections in a proper manner but to reiterate the demand for introduction of ballot papers in place of EVMs.

At media conference on Friday, Naidu said that the Modi-Shah combination has in association with KCR and Jaganmohan Reddy tried all possible tricks to see that the voters get demoralised and do not turn up in large numbers to vote. After seeing the manner in which the EVMs did not function he suspects that more than technical glitches, it was a deliberate attempt on the part of the Centre through EC to sabotage smooth conduct of the elections, he said.

The Chief Minister said that people of Andhra Pradesh had exhibited their courage and determination and came out in large numbers, faced the extreme heat conditions, attacks on booths by YSRCP activists and did not go back till they cast their vote. The Chief Minister said that there is a silent wave towards TDP in the state and no one saw it coming.

Thanking all the voters in general and women and senior citizens, Naidu said they had created a history of sorts. They did not get dejected when the EVMs did not function in the morning. They waited for a minimum of three hours, went back home, made another attempt in the afternoon and again when they found that the EC had failed to rectify EVMs, they again came back in the evening and stood in queue till early hours of Friday and exercised their franchise. This should come as a slap on the face of the officials concerned, he said.

It was a matter of shame that even the Chief Electoral Officer could not cast his vote due to failure of EVM. Such inconvenience would not have taken place if ballot papers were used. All this is orchestrated, and this trend needs to be fought at the national level to see that Modi does not return to power again, he said.

Naidu said that the Election Commission crossed its limits and transferred Intelligence DG and SPs of two districts without consulting the state government. All this was done to allow violence so that the poll turnout would be low benefitting YSRCP the new found friend of Modi, he said.

He said Narendra Modi, KCR and Jaganmohan Reddy are trying to destabilise the government.

YSRCP leaders started campaign that they purchased all the IPS officers, which indicates their brutal mentality. They did not even spare the Speaker of the Assembly. The BJP government, which ruined all the democratic institutions, used the Election Commission as a branch office, said Naidu.

He said that a young woman questioning the returning officer, that she came all the way from Pune to exercise her franschise and that she will not return without voting speaks volumes about the failure of EC.

Replying to a question, Naidu said he would talk to leaders of all the 21 parties which had demanded ballot paper and would file a review petition in the Supreme Court. Andhra Pradesh would be a case study of how democratic institutions like EC have also been destroyed by Modi government, he added.