HYDERABAD: With the elections just days away, “constraints” over security arrangements seem to be bothering the ECI functionary in the State. The poll panel has arranged for 145 companies of paramilitary forces to be deployed during Phase I of the elections, and Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Rajat Kumar observed that more personnel are needed, not just for law and order concerns, but also to help maintain processes and movement of voters.
“As many as 145 companies of paramilitary forces have been allotted. It is not a shortage, but there will be constraints,” Kumar observed at a press conference here. He further asked the ECI to rope in ex-army men as an “additional force”.
58 nominations in three days
In three days, aspirants have filed 58 nominations, most from Nizamabad (7), Bhongir (6), Pedapalle (6), Karimnagar (5), Malkajgiri (5) and Mahabubnagar (5). A whopping 42 of them were filed on the third day. “Candidates should not gesture a namaste in the pictures of the affidavits. Sporting of kanduva is also prohibited, and any such violations will lead to rejections,” Kumar pointed out. So far, there have been no rejections.
328 complaints on CVigil
Observing that the CVigil app was widely used to report Model Code of Conduct (MCC) violations in the state, the CEO said Nizamabad reported the most complaints on the app (75).The CEO’s office has also appointed a technical expert to gauge violations on social media.
All party meeting held
For the second time in a row, the TRS missed an all-party meeting convened by the CEO’s office. The BSP, CPI, CPI (M), TPCC and TDP attended the meeting on Wednesday.
MCC does not apply to the Governor
The CEO clarified that launching the Hyderabad metro service between Ameerpet and Hitec City was permissible. “Committee of secretaries has approved the inauguration function, keeping in view that the MCC is in force. We ensured that the ruling political party did not take an extra mileage through launch.”
Complaint lodged against MLC candidate
Hyderabad: A complaint was lodged with the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) against Raghotam Reddy, MLC candidate from Medak-Nizamabad-Adilabad-Karimnagar teachers constituency, who is backed by the teachers’ union PRTU, on Wednesday. The complaint was filed based on a video that surfaced on social media, of a party where liquor was served, allegedly organised by Reddy for teachers. Reddy could be seen in the video, along with many people sitting on tables with food and liquor on their tables.
The party was held at Nizamabad. It may be mentioned here that the MLC election is due on March 22. The video was uploaded on YouTube by a local television channel, BTV, which went viral. Later, an activist N Narayana sent an email to the CEO. The video was then removed.