Shock To SEC, AP HC Stalls Parishad Polls

In a significant move, AP High Court has issued a stay order over the MPTC and ZPTC elections. Responding to a petition filed by the Opposition parties against the SEC’s notification on Parishad polls, AP High Court has issued stay on the election notification. The High Court opined that the SEC’s notification is against the Supreme Court’s previous orders.

Opposition TDP, BJP and Janasena parties have welcomed the High Court’s order. While BJP claimed this as its own victory, TDP said their decision to boycott MPTC and ZPTC parishad polls stood validated with the High Court’s verdict.

While boycotting the polls, TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu in his press conference had quoted Supreme Court’s previous verdict that there should be a minimum of 4 weeks of election code to campaign for parties. Naidu had opposed the sudden rush over conducting the Parishad polls in the state without even convening the political parties.

The High Court pointed out that AP SEC had not complied with directives issued by the Supreme Court which stated there should be four-week gap between release of notification and the polls.