Election Commission of India bars G Jagadish Reddy from Munugode assembly byelection campaign for 48 hours

HYDERABAD: The Election Commission of India on Saturday barred energy minister G Jagadish Reddy from campaigning in Munugode assembly by-election for 48 hours for violating the poll code after he allegedly threatened to stop welfare schemes if people do not vote for the ruling TRS candidate.
The poll body barred the minister from holding public meetings, processions, rallies, roadshows, interviews and media interactions.
The ECI order, which came into force from pm on October 29, will be enforced for 48 hours.
Though the minister furnished a clarification for the notice served on him, the ECI was not satisfied with his reply.
The ECI, in its order on Saturday, said: “The tone and tenor of the speech made by the minister is in the nature of intimidation of voters and thus is a violation of the provisions of model code of conduct and censures him for the said violation.” The ECI slapped the notice on the minister as he was believed to have said at a meeting in Munugode on October 25 that the election was not between TRS candidate Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy and BJP’s Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy but whether they want welfare schemes or not.
HYDERABAD Jagadish Reddy, in his reply to the ECI notice, claimed that he had never said that welfare schemes would be stopped if people do not vote for the TRS candidate. “It was only an attempt by me to explain the welfare schemes being extended by the state government. My statement does not fall under the definition of corrupt practices,” he said. The minister also said the complaint filed by BJP leader K Dileep Kumar was vague, false, concocted and untrue. He said he spoke in Telugu at the meeting and had no clue as to how the transcript of his speech was presented to the ECI.