Tirupati: Opposition parties seek fresh election process for local bodies

Tirupati: The Opposition parties including TDP, BJP and CPI stepped up their efforts to press the State Election Commission to start the election process afresh for the local bodies, duly cancelling the nominations received to contest the elections. A delegation of BJP leaders on Wednesday submitted a memorandum to Additional SP Supraja to conduct inquiry into the violent incidents involving YSR Congress Party activists to prevent Opposition party candidates from filing nomination papers here on March 13.

In the representation, the party alleged that its candidate Saravana was beaten up and his nomination papers were torn by YSRCP activists who prevented him from filing nomination for division No.10 in the city.

On March 14, in the scrutiny, the election offi cer without any valid reason rejected BJP candidate Sangitham Ramya nomination filed for division No. 19 while another candidate B Nagaraju contesting for division No 38 is receiving threats asking him to retire from the contest.

Speaking to the media later, party State secretary G Bhanu Prakash Reddy and party State official spokesperson S Sreenivas demanded SEC to order for fresh election process in view of large-scale violence taking place during the filing of nominations in Chittoor district.

Meanwhile, a delegation of CPI leaders submitted a memorandum to RDO, seeking the SEC to order for fresh election process for local bodies. The delegation includes party city secretary Viswanatham, leader Murali, Janardhan and others. Meanwhile, former TDP MLA M Suguna addressing the media demanded that the SEC cancel the election process held so far to the local bodies to issue a fresh notification for the conduct of elections to local bodies.

She said in a pre-planned move, the YSRCP activists indulged in violence to prevent opposition candidates contest the election to ensure more number of their party candidates win in the election. She demanded an inquiry into the incidents to punish the guilty including the election officials who hobnobbed with YSRCP.