The Andhra Pradesh government on Monday filed a plea in the Supreme Court challenging the State Election Commission order postponing elections to rural and urban local bodies for six weeks, while a private petition was also filed in the High Court on the same issue, official sources said.
According to the sources, while the government petition is expected to be listed in the apex court on Tuesday, the High Court put off the private petition to March 19 as a similar plea is pending before the top Court.
State Election Commissioner N Ramesh Kumar called on Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan at the Raj Bhavan and briefed him about the decision to defer the local body elections in view of the coronavirus threat.
Ramesh Kumar is understood to have explained to the Governor the reason for postponing the elections to rural and urban local bodies by six weeks.
Under fire from the Chief Minister for the 'unilateral' decision to postpone the polls, the SEC is believed to have defended his action in the wake of the Centre declaring coronavirus a notified disaster.
Kumar is understood to have conveyed to the Governor that as the state recorded a coronavirus positive case, there was a need for precautionary measures like preventing public gatherings to check the spread of the virus.
The SEC reportedly explained to the governor that the decision was taken in the interest of public health and there was no other motive behind it.
Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney wrote to the SEC requesting that the order postponing the polls be revoked, and the elections be conducted as per the schedule announced earlier.
"The situation related to COVID-19 is under control in the state, and it would continue to be under control for another three to four weeks," the Chief Secretary said in the letter.
Opposition parties demanded that the election process be cancelled and not just postponed. following the violence allegedly perpetrated by the ruling YSR Congress.
The State Election Commissioner held consultations with his officials, and discussed the Chief Secretary's letter and the impending petitions in the High Court and the Supreme Court.
Official sources indicated that the SEC decided not to alter its position since the matter was now sub judice.
Elections to mandal parishad and zilla parishad territorial constituencies -- the second and the third tier of the panchayat raj system -- were originally scheduled to be conducted on March 21.
Municipalities and municipal corporations were to go to polls on March 23, while gram panchayat elections were originally slated for March 27 and 29.
On Sunday, the SEC announced its decision to put off the poll process for six weeks in view of the coronavirus threat.
The principal opposition Telugu Desam Party demanded that the Chief Minister tender an apology to the State Election Commissioner for casting unfounded aspersions.
Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Yanamala Ramakrishnudu also demanded that the Chief Secretary withdraw her letter to the SEC as it was "unconstitutional."
The ruling party continued to slam the SEC, saying he took a "biased decision" to put off the polls.
Ministers Perni Venkataramaiah, P Anil Kumar Yadav and Government Advisor (Public Affairs) Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy questioned the SEC's decision and said postponement of local bodies elections would stall 14th Finance Commission grants from the Centre to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore.
BJP state president Kanna Lakshminarayana, Jana Sena president K Pawan Kalyan, CPI national secretary K Narayana and other opposition leaders demanded scrapping the poll process following the violence allegedly perpetrated by the YSRC.
They wanted the SEC to hold the process from scratch to ensure a free and fair election.
With IANS inputs