Peddireddy condemns TDP allegations over Atchannaidu's arrest, says leader's unruly conduct led to arrest
The minister for panchayat raj, Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy, condemned the false allegations leveled by the TDP following the arrest of K. Atchannaidu and clarified that it was his own unruly conduct that had led to his arrest.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 3 Feb 2021 2:15 AM GMT
Vijayawada: The minister for panchayat raj, Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy, condemned the false allegations leveled by the TDP following the arrest of K. Atchannaidu and clarified that it was his own unruly conduct that had led to his arrest.
On 2 February, the Srikakulam police arrested former minister and TDP president Kinjarapu Atchannaidu for preventing rebel candidate Kinjarapu Appanna from filing nomination for gram panchayat elections at Nimmada panchayat in Srikakulam district.
The minister, Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy, said Atchannaidu had threatened the ruling YSRCP candidate, K. Appanna, for filing nomination for the post of Nimmada sarpanch. The telephone conversation where Atchannaidu can be heard threatening Appanna is doing the rounds, he added.
The police arrested Atchannaidu according to the relevant sections of the law and his arrest has nothing to do with the state government, the minister said, adding the TDP chief, Chandrababu Naidu, has been falsely accusing Chief Minister Y.S Jagan Mohan Reddy for Atchannaidu's arrest.
The minister accused Mr. Naidu and State Election Commissioner Ramesh Kumar of working in tandem with each other and echoing each other's remarks and statements. He said the SEC should have talked about Mr. Naidu and his involvement in the cash-for-vote case while touring Chittoor district as he did while in Kadapa.
Regarding the use of mobile app to report irregularities in the panchayat elections, the minister suspected it was a conspiracy as the app was being developed by a private company in Vijayawada city, likely by the TDP team.
He pointed out that the SEC's letter to the Governor is a breach of privilege and was taken to the notice of the Assembly Speaker. The SEC made several such allegations with an ulterior motive, degrading the legislative bodies by making such remarks, he said.
Meanwhile, at a separate press conference held in Visakhapatnam, Deputy Chief Minister Dharmana Krishnadas said the TDP state president, Atchannaidu, threatened YSRCP candidate from filing the nomination in his own constituency. The TDP leaders, however, are now blaming the YSRCP, he said.
He said the incident took place in Atchannaidu's constituency and the state government is no way involved in the incident. The YSRCP stands for free and fair elections and encourages unanimous polls to avoid unnecessary disputes in the villages, he added.
