In an oblique reference to the reservations expressed by Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on the postponement of elections to the local bodies, State Election Commissioner N. Ramesh Kumar clarified through a press note on Sunday that violence was a matter that engaged the commission and that various political parties had highlighted several incidents.
Violence was also a subject matter in an ongoing litigation before the High Court, in which the commission was a respondent, he pointed out.
As far as the restriction imposed by the commission on the distribution of house-site pattas, Mr. Ramesh Kumar said it was covered by the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) that would be in force during every election.
Mr. Ramesh Kumar observed that the present elections were merely put on hold and not cancelled. As the elections were likely to restart in six weeks, or earlier, if the coronavirus threat was de-escalated, a correct view was taken that the MCC would be in force.
Health advisory
Mr. Kumar further said that the Government of India had issued a health advisory to the States to avoid large public gatherings some time ago and, on March 14, it classified coronavirus as a disaster and kept the nation in a state of preparedness.
The commission contacted the national-level functionaries before deciding on the threat posed by coronavirus.
If the aforesaid warning was de-escalated, the commission would resume the election process without the loss of a single day.
Finally, Mr. Ramesh Kumar regretted that motives were attributed to the acts of the commission, which was a constitutional body, and the Commissioner, who was at par with a judge of the High Court.
He stated that all the safeguards available to the judge of the High Court were applicable to the Commissioner, and casting aspersions on the institution would weaken it.
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