In the Pulivendula and Ontimitta ZPTC by-elections in YSR Kadapa district, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) unleashed a wave of chaos, marked by inducements, intimidation, fake voting, and rigging. The YSRCP faced preemptive arrests and bind-over cases, while police and TDP goons acted with impunity, setting up checkpoints to block voters and YSRCP workers from entering villages. Voters were terrorized, prevented from casting their votes, and YSRCP agents were forcibly removed from polling booths by TDP goons, including Minister Mandipalli Ram Prasad Reddy. Under the supervision of coalition leaders, booths were rigged, voter slips were confiscated, and voters were driven away. TDP workers, armed with sticks, created havoc in villages, while voters pleaded with police to allow them to vote.
Polling Day: A Democracy defiled
To secure victory, TDP goons, under the oversight of Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Nara Lokesh, and ministers, resorted to anarchy. Fake voting, rigging, inducements, and threats undermined democracy. DIG Koya Praveen Kumar used police forces to intimidate YSRCP voters, while TDP leaders from Jammalamadugu and other constituencies cast fake votes in Pulivendula and Ontimitta with police support. Minister Mandipalli Ram Prasad Reddy stormed a booth in Ontimitta’s Chinnakothapalli with followers, attacked a YSRCP agent, seized voter slips, and expelled him. Villagers, denied their right to vote, confronted police and TDP leaders in protest.
Morning Chaos (7:00 AM Onward):
Before polling began on Tuesday, TDP goons, armed with sticks and weapons, terrorized voters and blocked access to polling booths. Police, instead of intervening, collaborated with TDP, setting up checkpoints to prevent YSRCP voters and workers from entering villages. In some areas, voters begged police to allow them to vote. In Nallagondavaripalli, Pulivendula, voters pleaded at police checkpoints to cast their ballots.
Fake Voting by TDP Workers:
TDP goons prevented local voters from reaching polling stations, while outsiders from neighboring areas, including Jammalamadugu, queued up to cast fake votes. Adinarayana Reddy from Jammalamadugu brought large numbers of fake voters, including TDP state farmers’ wing secretary and Jammalamadugu Market Yard Vice Chairman Ponnathota Malli, TDP sarpanch Pullareddy from Karmalavaripalli, and Patakunta Shivareddy from Gudemcheruvu, among others. In Nallapureddipalli, TDP workers distributed voter slips for fake voting. In Kanampalli, TDP workers from Vemula and Duggannagaripalli rigged votes, prompting protests from locals.
Attacks and Intimidation of YSRCP Workers:
In Ontimitta’s Chintarajupalli, TDP leaders attacked YSRCP agents at polling booths. In Kanampalli, police threatened Sarpanch Ramanjaneyulu with a gun at his home. In Motnuthalapalli, Pulivendula, TDP goons attacked voters on their way to polling booths, threatening them not to vote. Defying regulations, Minister Mandipalli Ram Prasad Reddy, accompanied by TDP workers, entered a booth in Chinnakothapalli, Ontimitta, attacked YSRCP agent Subbareddy, seized voter slips, and expelled him. Police visited YSRCP ZPTC candidate Hemant Reddy’s residence in Pulivendula, creating a disturbance. In Tummalapalli, YSRCP agent Latha and villagers expressed outrage at police inaction during TDP’s rigging.
Koya Praveen’s Drama:
From the morning, police acted unilaterally, supporting TDP. Under DIG Koya Praveen Kumar’s leadership, YSRCP leaders, including Kadapa MP YS Avinash Reddy and senior leader Satish Reddy, were arrested. Avinash Reddy was dragged away without even being allowed to wear shoes, despite mentioning health issues, and was later released. Around 1:30 PM, Koya Praveen led a large police force to the YSRCP office in Pulivendula, placing Avinash Reddy under house arrest and abusing YSRCP workers. Koya Praveen staged a high-drama spectacle at the office, while a DSP threatened, “I’ll shoot you down, you rascal, this is my uniform,” in an overzealous display of authority.
