Murikivada Nivasula Samkshema Sangham of Ambedkarnagar in Ward No. 70 has lodged a complaint against YSR Congress candidate for Pendurthy Gandi Babji for allegedly threatening them and trying to influence them with inducements.
Sangham general secretary K. Nirmala said they had submitted their charter of demands to all the candidates as part of “people’s agenda” prepared by them to insist on them to give a written undertaking to take up their cause if they get elected.
A copy of the complaint was submitted to the District Collector on Tuesday. About 240 families live in the colony with 1,000 voters.
The complaint stated that Mr. Babji sought time to consult his lawyer when they met him four days ago and later he wanted to know how much money they wanted to extend their support to him. “He threatened us last night,” Ms. Nirmala said in the complaint.
Former IAS officer E.A.S. Sarma, who also wrote to the Election Commission, condemned the incident and described it as violation of Model Code of Conduct. He said as per the complaint, the YSR Congress candidate, while refusing to sign a list of assurances put forward by the slum-dwellers, offered bribe and threatened them with force.
“I believe that what the candidate has done amounted to a criminal offence and a serious infringement of the Model Code of Conduct, deserving an outright disqualification to contest,” he stated and sought a probe into the incident.
