ECI should deploy Central forces in Nagarjunasagar bypoll: Uttam

‘Local police hand-in-glove with ruling party’

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president and Nalgonda MP N. Uttam Kumar Reddy has appealed to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to deploy Central forces in Nagarjunasagar bypoll as the “local police was hand-in-glove with the ruling party and turning a blind eye to rampant distribution of money and liquor to influence voters”. “The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Telangana, district officials and the Returning Officer too, are silent and not taking action despite the submission of evidence on money and liquor distribution and intimidation of voters by the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS),” Mr. Reddy alleged. He made the allegations in a video conference with Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Tuesday. Mr. Reddy sought the immediate intervention of the ECI or else there would be no meaning of democracy. Mr. Reddy said there were more outsiders in the constituency than the actual voters as the TRS has deployed all its workers, including ministers, MLAs, MLCs, sarpanches in all 189 gram panchayats, two municipalities and tribal hamlets of Nagarjunasagar Assembly constituency.