Amaravati

YSR Congress Party chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday accused the Andhra Pradesh government of undermining democracy even at the level of local body elections, citing alleged violence, intimidation and misuse of police machinery during recent Mandal Parishad President (MPP) by-elections.

Referring to the MPP bypolls held in Vinjamuru mandal of Nellore district and Bommanahal mandal of Ananthapur district, the former chief minister claimed that the electoral process had been reduced to a display of force rather than a democratic exercise.

In a post on X, Jagan alleged that the conduct of the elections exposed what he described as the “high-handed approach” of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and its leadership. He claimed that democracy was being “brutally crushed” even in indirect elections at the mandal level.

The YSRCP has demanded that the Vinjamuru and Bommanahal by-elections be annulled and re-conducted in a free and fair environment.

According to Jagan, in the Udayagiri Assembly constituency of Nellore district, elected Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) members belonging to the YSRCP were allegedly stopped en route to the polling venue, attacked and prevented from casting their votes.

He claimed that one woman MPTC member sustained bleeding injuries, another was allegedly abducted, while a third was taken into police custody. These actions, he said, were intended to prevent elected representatives from exercising their voting rights in the MPP election.

Terming the incidents a “deliberate attempt to stifle democratic voices through fear and coercion,” Jagan alleged that the police remained passive spectators and acted under political pressure from the ruling NDA alliance.

He further claimed that a similar situation prevailed in Bommanahal mandal of Rayadurgam constituency, where YSRCP MPTC members were allegedly confined and kept away, enabling the MPP election to be conducted forcibly.

Jagan alleged that attacks on elected representatives, abductions and the alleged misuse of police machinery had become commonplace under the TDP-led coalition government.

“If such practices are being followed even in indirect local body elections, it reflects the government’s arrogance and anti-democratic mindset,” he said.

Separately, YSRCP leader L Appireddy has written to the State Election Commissioner and the Director General of Police, alleging police misuse and political interference during the bypolls.

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There was no immediate response from the ruling TDP to the allegations.