Minister for Municipal Administration Botsa Satyanarayana said the State Election Commissioner Nimmagadaa Ramesh Kumar has been vindictive towards the Government and his letter to the Governor is uncalled for.

Addressing a press conference here on Saturday, the Minister unequivocally condemned the letter written by SEC to the Governor and said that it is the State Election Commissioner who had repeatedly crossed the Lakshmana Rekha with his vindictive nature and has accused the ministers of violating their rights and personal reputation. He said that the letter itself was like terrorising the Governor. He questioned why is it necessary for the SEC to go to Kadapa and make comments that are not relevant to the elections.

The Minister said that the person in the chair of the State Election Commission must be impartial and work as a respected constitutional body. But in contrast, the SEC has written a letter degrading the public representatives who are part of the State government. ‘We totally condemn the points mentioned in the letter and we are not new to politics. This is not my first time as a cabinet minister, I served as a Cabinet Minister twice earlier and even as a Member of Parliament.

Similarly, Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy is also a very senior leader and we are the ones who always obey the law and the constitution with respect and never violate them. SEC Ramesh Kumar is acting more like a political leader, where he even spoke about former Chief Minister YS Rajashekar Reddy and CBI cases in his visit to Kadapa district. He questioned SEC how they are related to elections and said that bringing up issues unrelated to elections shows the dual attitude of the SEC. Leveling allegations against the government is beyond his limits. He asserted that YSRCP will win the elections irrespective of SEC’s attitude or his secret political partnership with Chandrababu Naidu.

He said that the government is encouraging peaceful elections in the State without any disturbances or chaos. Panchayat elections have to be held without the involvement of any political party for the development of the villages. The Minister said that the SEC has been saying things that are not related to the election process and is trying to provoke the people. He said that the SEC has the right to speak on unanimous elections if they are forcefully held but he has been avoiding such elections to safeguard the interests of TDP and Chandrababu Naidu.