TDP national president N. Chandrababu Naidu has welcomed Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan’s directive to the government to reinstate N. Ramesh Kumar as the State Election Commissioner (SEC) in line with the High Court’s order.
In a series of tweets on Wednesday, Mr. Naidu said, “The Governor has upheld the sanctity of the Constitution and the dignity of the courts of justice.”
Underlining the significance of Article 243 K(2), which specifies the Governor’s role in determining the tenure of the SEC, Mr. Naidu said that Mr. Ramesh Kumar had deferred the local body elections in view of the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Though Mr. Ramesh Kumar had taken the decision to prevent a major health risk to the voters, he was removed in violation of the Constitution, Mr. Naidu observed.
The government’s unlawful action could be halted with the intervention of the court, he added.
Demanding stringent action against those responsible for Mr. Ramesh Kumar’s removal, the TDP president appealed to the government to realise its mistakes and desist from being “adamant” in implementing its “unilateral decisions.”
‘Protect autonomy’
Asking the government to cooperate with the SEC in conducting free and fair elections to the local bodies, he said the autonomy of the SEC should be protected in the long-term interests of democracy.
Alleging that the YSRCP leaders had resorted to violence and attacked the contestants of the opposition parties in the exercise that preceded the SEC’s decision, Mr. Naidu said the legislature, the judiciary, the executive, and the media had all come under attack.
