TDP charges Cong with encouraging defections

Hyderabad, Jul 6 (UNI) The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) today claimed the ruling Congress was encouraging defections to win by ''hook or crook'' a majority in the Zilla Parishads where the TDP emerged successful in the local body elections.

Addressing a press conference here, TDP Spokesman M V Mysooora Reddy and Former Minister K Vijayarama Rao claimed their party ZPTC members in Rangareddy and other districts were being promised upto Rs one crore each to defect to the Congress.

The TDP would politically meet the move and ensure the election of the TDP candidates in the indirect elections slated for July ten and 11 wherever it had won a majority of ZPTC seats, they asserted.

With a view to end the ''Aya Ram, Gaya Ram'' culture, the previous TDP Government had enacted a law to automatically disqualify a ZPTC member who voted against the party whip, they recalled.

But the Congress Government changed the rules empowering the Presiding Officer to decide and allow time for defectors to involve themselves in protracted court cases even as they continued as ZPTC members, they claimed.

Seeing ''ulterior political motive'' behind the government's decision, they claimed this was only to give ''protection'' to defectors.

''This is against the spirit of the Constitution,'' they opined.

Meanwhile, successful TDP candidates from various districts called on TDP Chief N Chandrababu Naidu to chalk out the party's strategy for the indirect elections for various posts, including Zilla Parishad Chairman.

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