VIJAYAWADA: With a series of I-T raids on its leaders, the TDP on Thursday took up the issue with Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gopal Krishna Dwivedi raising objections over what the leaders claimed as ‘targeted’ raids. Meanwhile, the I-T sleuths continued their crackdown in the State and conducted searches on the companies of a TDP leader in Guntur district.
The IT officials conducted raids at the gas agency and petrol outlets belonging to TDP leader Kovelamudi Ravindra alias Nani in Guntur. Ravindra was an aspirant from Guntur West Assembly seat on TDP ticket, but the party high command gave the ticket to another leader at the last minute.
Protesting the searches, the TDP leaders staged a dharna for some time alleging that BJP was conducting raids at the behest of YSR Congress. The gas agency and petrol outlets are located at Brodipet and Brundavan Gardens in Guntur city.
According to reports, as many as 10 officials of I-T department conducted searches on Thursday morning. They did not allow anybody to enter the record rooms. Knowing about the raids, the TDP leaders and cadres rushed to the offices and squatted before Ambedkar statue at Amaravati Road.
They alleged that the BJP government colluded with YSRC president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao and conducting raids on TDP leaders, but the people of AP will teach a befitting lesson to BJP-YSRC with their vote power. They alleged that the I-T officials conducted raids against Kovelamudi Ravindra a month ago.
The continuous raids by the I-T sleuths on the residences and business establishments of the TDP leaders seems to be rattling the party. The party leaders maintained that they expected such raids after the party snapped its ties with the BJP. On Thursday, they lodged a complaint with the Election Commission blaming that the raids were being carried out intentionally.
The I-T officials recently conducted searches on the hospital of TDP candidate Ugra Narasimha Reddy in Guntur and on the house of Mydukur TDP candidate Putta Sudhakar Yadav in Proddutur. Against this backdrop, a delegation of TDP leaders, led by Rajya Sabha MP Kanakamedala Ravindra Kumar, submitted a memorandum to the CEO in his chambers at the Interim Government Complex in Velagapudi on Thursday.
The TDP leaders claimed that the raids conducted on three TDP candidates are intentional. They claimed that the CEO responded positively to their complaint and sought an explanation from the I-T officials. The CEO also promised to send notices to I-T sleuths directing them to give clarification in a written format, the TDP leaders added.
Lodge MCC complaints with observers : CEO
With the office of the CEO at the Interim Government Complex in Velagapudi flooding with complaints regarding Model Code of Conduct violations, CEO Gopal Krishna Dwivedi has informed that for overseeing the conduct of elections besides Collectors, SPs, ROs and other field officers, 190 observers have been deployed by the Election Commission of India in Andhra Pradesh. The CEO appealed to the general public to lodge their complaints with the observers, who are positioned in the constituency itself. Details of the observers are available on the CEO Andhra Pradesh website www.ceoandhra.nic.in
YSRC complaint
Vijayawada: The YSRC on Thursday filed a complaint with the CEO against the TDP government alleging that the latter was publicising the Pasupu-Kukuma and Annadata Sukhibava schemes to induce voters. “This is a violation of the model code of conduct,’’ the YSRC leaders alleged.