Removal of Ramesh Kumar as Andhra Pradesh Election Commissioner is against Constitution: TDP chief

TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday condemned the removal of N. Ramesh Kumar from the State Election Commissioner's (SEC) post despite the fact that he saved the people of Andhra Pradesh from coronavirus epidemic threat by the timely postponement of the local body elections.

"Ramesh Kumar was undemocratically and unceremoniously eased out of the SEC position which was reprehensible and against the letter and spirit of the Constitution," Naidu said during a video-conference with his party leaders.

Naidu accused the YSR Congress Party-led government of turning the COVID-19 quarantine into a farce as several leaders of the ruling party leaders are continuously breaking lockdown. "While no isolation procedures were followed for SEC Kanagaraj who came from Chennai and for contractors who arrived from Hyderabad, common people and migrant labourers were put to untold hardships on inter-state borders," said Naidu.

Naidu also said, "The government removed the SEC over elections postponement, suspended a doctor for requesting masks, suspended a municipal commissioner for exposing lack of funds and did not give the required number of personal protection equipment (PPE) to the frontline warriors in virus fight."

"The government's failure was behind the capital city area, Guntur and Krishna districts being classified as virus red zones. Vijayawada is a clear example of how suppression of a COVID-19 death leads to a faster spread of the dreaded virus," he added.

Meanwhile, the TDP chief also accused Chief Minister Jaganmohan Reddy of "deliberately giving misleading information to PM Modi by taking Mandal as criterion instead of districts for assessing COVID-19 impact."

He also demanded dismissal of Deputy Chief Minister K Narayana Swamy for his objectionable comments "Coronavirus was spreading as Muslims licked scraps of foods on used plates and spoons."

On the eve of Dr BR Ambedkar Jayanti, Naidu appealed to people to celebrate the occasion in their respective homes.