SEC\'s ‘eWatch’ app not trustworthy: YSRC

VIJAYAWADA: Ruling YSR Congress has said the poll app of the State Election Commission, eWatch, is not trustworthy as it is a privately developed app.

YSRC MLA and the party’s official spokesperson, Ambati Rambabu, said the ruling party in the state has no trust in the app launched by SEC Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar for monitoring the panchayat elections. He alleged that the app was developed in the Telugu Desam office.

Addressing the media here on Wednesday, the MLA said the election monitoring app was designed in the TD office in the same way SEC Ramesh Kumar's letter to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) was drafted there.

Rambabu said the government is not involved in the arrest of Atchannaidu. He was caught with evidence of threatening a candidate over filing the nomination for panchayat polls. The police did their duty. He criticised Atchannaidu for threatening to avenge the police act.

“TD leaders are daydreaming and under the illusion of coming to power and forming the next state government, and they hope Lokesh, father Naidu, Atchannaidu and current SEC Ramesh Kumar would hold plum positions in future,” he said.

Speaking on the SEC’s visit to Gollagunta in East Godavari district, where the husband of a sarpanch candidate died under suspicious circumstances, Rambabu said that the job of SEC is to oversee the elections and not visit families. Police would take care of the investigations. He said the election commissioner visited Gollagunta “as a pilot” for Lokesh and as a representative of the TD.

Rambabu said TD leader Kommareddy Pattabhiram’s car had been attacked in the past and the reason could be personal enmity.  He criticised Pattabhiram for not filing an official complaint on the attack and accusing the YSRC leaders for no reason.

He said the government has no reason to attack Chandrababu Naidu or his men since Chandrababu is already “politically irrelevant”.