Terms the charges false and fabricated, urges ECI to take action against TRS leader Soma Bharath Kumar for trying to tarnish his image
Congress Candidate P Sravanthi, TRS candidate Koosukuntla Prabhakar Reddy and BJP candidate Komtireddy Rajgopal Reddy for Munude by election.
The BJP candidate for the Munugode by-election, Komatireddy Rajgopal Reddy, denied allegations that his family-owned firm, Sushee Infra Mining Limited, had transferred ₹5.24 crore from its account to 23 other accounts held by individuals and companies in the constituency.
“I would like to mention that all the charges levelled against me are false and fabricated, intended to tarnish my image in the Munugode constituency, where I am contesting as the BJP candidate”, he told the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday, 31 October.
The ECI had asked Rajgopal Reddy to respond to the allegations by 4 pm on Monday. It was alleged that Sushee Infra had transferred the money from its State Bank of India account to 23 other accounts on three days, 14, 18 and 24 October.
The TRS alleged that the funds were meant for voter inducement.
While replying to the ECI within the stipulated deadline, Rajgopal Reddy requested the authority to treat the entire petition as void ab initio (void from the beginning) since no transfer of money had taken place with his or the chief election agent’s authorisation.
The BJP candidate further added that he was neither a director nor a partner of Sushee Infra, which has his son Komatireddy Sankeerth Reddy as its managing director.
The ECI issued the notice to Rajgopal Reddy based on a complaint by TRS General Secretary Soma Bharath Kumar.
Since the allegation has been false and fabricated, the charge that he had violated the model code of conduct, too, should be considered false. Rajgopal Reddy said he has appended a detailed statement denying each of the transactions the complainant had mentioned.
Being elected as an MLC, MLA and MP earlier, Rajgopal Reddy said he was aware of the Constitution, the supreme authority of the ECI, and its rules and regulations. He was not punished for any electoral offence previously.
The bypoll in Munugode was necessitated after Rajgopal Reddy, who won on a Congress ticket, resigned and joined the BJP. The by-election is on Thursday, 3 November.
He added that Sushee Infra was awarded a coal mining contract after winning a competitive global tendering process.
Rajgopal Reddy also requested the ECI to initiate stringent action against the complainant for making baseless allegations intended to defame him and to disturb the ongoing election process.
Earlier, in its notice to Rajgopal Reddy, the ECI said that, as transferer, if done by him or under his direction by his family-owned company as alleged, he has to ensure that this fund transferred to 23 bank accounts is not used for voter inducement, which is a corrupt practice.
The ECI also quoted the Model Code of Conduct for his reference.
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