BJP alleges officials allowed TRS to distribute money well into night

HYDERABAD: Overnight protests by BJP leaders demanding immediate action against non-local people’s presence in Munugode constituency led to the police taking BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar while on his way to Munugode. Elsewhere in the constituency, the party candidate Komatireddy Rajgopal Reddy, who too demanded similar action by the Election Commission officials and the police, said he had to sit on a dharna at the Returning Officer’s office at Chandur but no action was taken by the officials.

Sanjay, who was taken into custody by the police while rushing to Munugode on Wednesday night to protest police inaction into the BJP complaints, on Thursday morning said police and election commission officials were ignoring BJP’s repeated complaints that some TRS ministers, MLAs and leaders were still in Munugode and distributing cash to voters. He said the TRS leaders distributed Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per vote in the night and the police did not take action on the BJP complaints to allow the ruling party to go about with enticing voters with cash doles.

“They should not be there, but the cops are tipping them off before going on searches so the TRS leaders and escape. We waited till last evening, and after our repeated complaints fell on deaf ears, Rajgopal had to sit on a dharna in Chandur,” Sanjay said on Thursday morning. He was speaking with reporters at the Abdullapurmet police station where he was held overnight. Soon after, Sanjay was taken from the police station, ostensibly to the BJP headquarters in the city.

In Munugode, the BJP candidate Komatireddy Rajgopal Reddy rushed late last night to the Returning Officer’s office at Chandur to lodge a protest and seek action against outsiders in the constituency. He said officials were ignoring his complaints that several non-locals, who were TRS leaders, were in every village distributing cash and urging voters to cast ballots for TRS. “There is a coordinated effort on part of officials, and the police to allow TRS leaders to break every rule, and allow them to lure voters with cash,” he said.

On Thursday morning, Rajgopal Reddy made the rounds of various polling stations.