ECI orders transfer of AP Intel chief P Sitaramanjaneyulu, Vijayawada CP Kanthi Rana Tata

Amaravati: The Election Commission of India has ordered the transfer of two top officers in Andhra Pradesh, weeks before the polls on May 13. The ECI has ordered the transfer of two officers: AP Intelligence chief P Sitaramanjaneyulu, DGP Intelligence and Vijayawada Commissioner of Police Kanthi Rana Tata

The Election Commission of India issued orders on Tuesday directing the two officers to hand the in-charge to the officer immediate below in rank and the officer should not be assigned any election-related works till completion of simultaneous elections to the Legislative Assembly and House of the People, 2024, in Andhra Pradesh.

ECI has further requested that a panel of three officers of the Indian Police Service (IPS) against the incumbent post be furnished by April 24, 4 pm along with their APAR grading for the last five years and vigilance clearance to the commission.

This comes ahead of the polls and looks like a repeat of what happened in Telangana, where close to 40 officers were transferred overnight ahead of the State Legislative elections. They included top officials like Hyderabad Commissioner CV Anand and many district collectors.

The AP DGP Intelligence has come under questioning after the stone attack on chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and similar attacks on TDP and Jana Sena party chief N Chandrababu Naidu and Pawan Kalyan, respectively. Many questioned the standard of security arrangements around VIPs.