“His (Reddy) house was raided in the morning. He was not found, so several teams are now moving around to arrest him,” AP CEO told media.
YSRCP MLA damaging the EVM. (Screengrab)
Andhra Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Mukesh Kumar Meena on Wednesday said police teams have been formed to look for ‘absconding’ YSRCP MLA P Ramakrishna Reddy who vandalised an electronic voting machine (EVM) at a polling centre in Macharla constituency of Palnadu district.
The CEO said police raided Reddy’s residence this morning, but he was not found there.
“His (Reddy) house was raided in the morning. He was not found, so several teams are now moving around to arrest him,” Meena told media.
On 13 May, Reddy, who is Macherla Assembly constituency candidate of the ruling YSRCP allegedly barged into a polling station and smashed the EVM.
The entire act was caught on a web camera installed by the Election Commission (EC), leading to his identification with footage and documentary evidence.
On Tuesday, the EC directed Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) Harish Kumar Gupta to take stringent criminal against the MLA.
According to the EC, EVMs were damaged at seven polling stations in Macherla constituency alone on the polling day.
“In Macherla Assembly Constituency, EVMs were damaged in seven polling stations including the PS no (polling station number) 202 where this incident of damage of EVM by the sitting MLA P Ramakrishna Reddy was recorded in the web camera,” said a statement from Meena’s office late on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Meena noted that Reddy has been named as accused number one (A1) in the case registered after verifying the footage under 10 stringent sections.
Taking serious note of the incident, the poll panel has questioned local election authorities as to why YSRCP Macherla assembly candidate was not arrested yet, including issuing immediate arrest orders.
“EC has said that such incidents are very shameful… the intention is to conduct free, fair and peaceful elections, but when the candidate (Reddy) himself indulges in such an act (then) it is a very serious matter,” added Meena.
According to visuals aired on some TV channels, a convoy of vehicles belonging to the MLA was found abandoned near Kandi on the outskirts of Hyderabad.
The EC had also called on the police to take stringent action against all the persons involved in the EVM damaging cases to make an example out of them so that “nobody in the future dares to take any such action to interfere into the peaceful conduct of polls”.
The southern state witnessed poll-related violence at several places in the districts of Palnadu, Tirupati and Anantapur.
DGP Gupta on Tuesday said state-wide cordon and search operations have been set in motion to uphold law and order, maintain peace and avert violence, especially in the backdrop of poll-related violence.
(With PTI inputs)
Jul 04, 2024
Jul 04, 2024
Jul 04, 2024
Jul 03, 2024
Jul 03, 2024
Jul 03, 2024
