HYDERABAD: Apprehending that incidents of large-scale violence may take place in the general elections, members of the Legal Education and Action for Rural Poor (LEARP) today appealed to the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) to intervene and direct the Election Commission (EC) to take measures ensuring protection of voters’ rights and conduct of free and fair poll.
They said leaders of all major political parties ought to be held liable for any acts of violence committed by their followers during polls.
The LEARP would shortly file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the High Court for the purpose. A delegation comprising LEARP director TJG Srinivasa Rao, lawyers S Raja Rao, V Ramana, Ravi Babu, Subba Rao, retired police officer AVP Suresh Kumar and others today filed a petition before State HRC chairperson B Subhashan Reddy here, requesting him to treat `voters’ rights’ as human rights and initiate steps to protect their interests.
Citing incidents of poll violence in 2004, they urged the chairperson to act like an `observer’ till the completion of the poll process.
Besides the EC, District Collectors and Superintendents of Police (SPs) should also be directed to ensure that every voter casted his vote without fear and with freedom. "Due to fear and insecurity, voters are not willing to caste their votes freely on the day of polling.
As a result, the percentage of polling has been decreasing from one election to another," they noted.
The LEARP members, in their petition, wanted the HRC chairperson to fix a responsibility for the EC by directing it to inform presidents of all political parties to desist from giving party tickets to persons having criminal record. Instead, the parties should give an opportunity to educated persons to contest and serve the society. At present, voters were left with no other option but to elect a better candidate among the `criminals’ who were contesting the elections, they lamented.
