Dwivedi To Submit Report On AP Poll Violations To CEC

Amaravati/Delhi :The Election Commission of India (ECI) has decided to take a serious view of poll code violation and negative remarks against its functioning during the Elections conducted in the state of Andhra Pradesh.TheState Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gopal Krishna Dwivedi has been asked to submit a comprehensive report of the poll-related events and also send a transcript of the conversation that took place between him and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on the day before elections.

Meanwhile CEO Gopal Krishna Dwivedi has asked the collectors of the 13 districts to submit a report on the poll related incidents that took place on April 11. The CEO was also reportedly upset that district collectors failed to utilise the services of three engineers from BHEL who were allotted to each Assembly constituency to attend to any technical problems in EVMs. He was also upset that the engineers were not given route maps to help them travel from one centre to another. He had mentioned earlier that 600 BHEL engineers were brought in from Bengaluru specially to handle the technical glitches during the poll time. Out of the 600 engineers, three were allotted to each Assembly constituency to support the poll officers.

The collectors were also asked to submit a report explain as to why the there was a delay in polling in some places which had led to voters casting votes even after 6 pm and in some cases even after midnight on the day of polls.

It is learnt that EC is also preparing the ground to initiate action against officials involved in four such incidents that highlighted irregularities, in the districts of Krishna, Nellore and Visakhapatnam. The polling staff in all these cases will face action, according to CEC who has already sought and received reports from the collectors of the three districts in this regard.

Dwivedi had earlier warned all officials involved that stern action would be taken in case of negligence when it comes to safekeeping of the EVMs in strong rooms. The other issues included the handing over of an EVM by a Returning Officer in Penamaluru constituency in Krishna district and also minor participating in voting in Rajam constituency in Srikakulam district.

Gopal Krishna Dwivedi has also sent a proposal to the Chief Election Commission (CEC in Delhi ,) seeking repoll in five polling stations in three districts of Andhra Pradesh. The proposal was based on the recommendations of the Guntur, Nellore and Prakasam districts collectors submitted to the CEC. Re- Polling has to be conducted in the 94th polling station at Narasaraopeta assembly constituency in Guntur district, 244th polling station at Nallcheruvu in Guntur West constituency, the 41st polling station at Isukapalli in the Nellore Assembly constituency, the 197th booth at Sullurupeta constituency and 247th polling station in Attakanithippa in Prakasam district, as mentioned in the report.

Also Read: Repolling Likely In 5 Centers Across AP: CEO Dwivedi