Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday, 26 April, accused the Election Commission of usurping the powers of his government and preventing it from discharging its duties.
According to a report in The Indian Express, he accused the Election Commission of holding “double standards” and enforcing “frivolous” rules in the name of Model Code of Conduct.
Naidu criticised the EC over issues during polling in the state in the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
“In my 40 years of public life as a senior politician and administrator of this country, I have never seen an election which was so badly conducted, logistically mismanaged and poorly organised.”N Chandrababu Naidu, Andhra Pradesh CM
Naidu also alleged the EC was facilitating the functioning of the BJP-led central government and states ruled by the party and its allies, reported PTI.
In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, he said the chief electoral officer (CEO) of Andhra Pradesh had reportedly told the media that the chief minister does not have the power to conduct review meetings as the model code of conduct is in force.
“There’s no such provision in the model code of conduct… I am duty bound and empowered to conduct review meetings. The CEO is spreading misinformation and exceeding his jurisdiction.”Chandrababu Naidu alleged in the letter.
Naidu claimed in the letter that the Union government held a cabinet meeting on 15 April and “even today, regular security briefings and meetings take place at the central level. The CM of Telangana is also conducting review meetings regularly”, he said in the letter.
He said since there is a large gap of 42 days before the results are announced on 23 May, the normal administration cannot be allowed to come to a standstill.
(With inputs from PTI and The Indian Express)
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