BJP hails court decision on Panchayat polls

Hyderabad, June 20 (UNI) The BJP today welcomed the verdict of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, quashing notification issued by the State Election Commissioner (SEC) on June 10, proposing to hold elections to the Panchayat Raj bodies and demanded the Congress step down in wake of irregularities in electoral rolls.

Talking to newspersons here, BJP State President Indrasena Reddy alleged that the Congress government should step down from office on moral grounds after the court judgement.

''But we are confident that the government will not do so.

We demand that the government take steps for fair and smooth conduct of elections to the Panchayat Raj bodies,'' he pointed out.

Mr Reddy said the BJP had been raising its voice about irregularities in the electoral rolls and changes in Brahmanpalli Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) jurisdictions and booths.

''The government wanted to win the elections by adopting undemocratic methods,'' he alleged.

Former union minister and senior BJP leader C H Vidyasagar Rao expressed concern over the behaviour of some government officials and elected representatives with regard to the Election Commission guidelines.

He alleged it was unfortunate that District Collectors were prepared to change the caste of a community on the instructions of the government overnight. ''Such Collectors should be suspended'', he added.

Mr Rao said, ''It is the duty of State Election Commissioner A V S Reddy to instill faith in the people of the state that there would be free and fair elections. The government does not have clarity over the issue of transfer of 29 powers to the Panchayat Raj System,'' he added.

He criticised the opportunism displayed by the CPI, the CPI(M) and the Telangana Rasthra Samiti (TRS), in the wake of polls.

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