BRS leader creates ruckus against deletion of names from SCB voters list

Hyderabad: Drama unfolded outside the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) office on Friday when hundreds of cantonment residents, led by BRS  leader and chairman of Telangana State mineral development corporation Krishank Manne, staged a protest against the deletion of close to 35,00 names in the SCB voters' list.

The protestors, who came in huge numbers on Friday morning, jumped over the barricades, and were involved in a minor scuffle with police personnel, demanding that the 35,000 names be restored to the voter's list. The protestors mainly comprised residents of SCB ward no 2 (Rasoolpura), whose number of voters came down from 30,000 to 7,000, they claimed. They added that the deletion and announcement of polls happened at a time when talks about the SCB merger with Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation were at their peak.

"These people have been living here for decades now. They have their Aadhaar cards and have been voting in the local, Assembly and parliamentary elections. Why they should be deprived of the privilege in SCB elections? Why weren't these people even notified about the same? The constitution guarantees everyone the right to vote. This is an attack on their identity and their place," Manne said.

"We will go to any length to ensure our right to vote is restored. We are being considered as voiceless but we won't be silent anymore. We're the ones living here and we have not indulged in any wrong-doing," said Yadamma K, one of the protesters.  

He had earlier alleged that the voters were being denied their rights in the upcoming polls because Ward 2 had primarily voted for the BRS in the Assembly and Lok Sabha polls.

"If their names are not restored, we will not stop here, thousands more will turn up next time," he added.

SCB CEO Madhukar Naik said that the deletion was done in compliance with the Supreme Court's order back in 2018-19 and is devoid of any political vendetta.

"The action is in tune with the apex court's order on the allegations that the voters had encroached upon the defence land and had been staying illegally, years ago. The protestors have not contested the order till date," he said.
Meanwhile, this is not the first time the BRS has protested against the voters list. A similar protest in Mudfort last March lasted for three days.