Hyderabad: Former minister T Harish Rao, on Thursday, alleged that an alliance between the Congress and the BJP had become evident during the municipal elections.The BRS MLA pointed out that BJP leaders who allegedly abused police officers were not arrested, while BRS leaders were targeted with false cases merely for questioning the authorities. He said the Congress govt had “murdered democracy” during the municipal elections and that some police officers behaved like agents of the ruling party.Speaking to reporters after meeting former MLA Balka Suman at Adilabad Central Jail, where he is currently in remand, Harish said the arrests of Balka Suman, Rajireddy and Anil Laxmikant were illegal and politically motivated. He alleged that although jails were available in Peddapalli and Asifabad under the Ramagundam Commissionerate, the arrested leaders were deliberately shifted to Adilabad Jail, nearly 200 km away, as an act of political vendetta.Referring to the Kaithanpally municipal chairperson election, Harish said the BRS–CPI alliance won 14 out of 22 seats and had clearly secured the people’s mandate. However, he alleged that minister Vivek Venkatswamy and the Congress leadership attempted to seize power through backdoor methods by disrupting the chairperson election process.Harish further alleged that police parades in places such as Jangaon, Ibrahimpatnam, Amangal and Kaithanpally were intended not to protect the public, but to intimidate BRS councillors and leaders. He said that despite the BRS having a clear majority in Ibrahimpatnam, attempts were made to obstruct the election process.Harish stated that when the BRS was in power, the Congress won only four municipalities and the BRS govt never resorted to such tactics. He added that although the BRS had now won nearly 800 councillor seats, the Congress govt was using the police machinery to capture power through undemocratic means.
