 "BJP candidate rejects TRS' charge of money transfer to induce voters")
The Election Commission (EC) has asked Telangana's chief electoral officer to keep a "close watch" on the Munugode Assembly constituency through "various enforcement agencies" ahead of the November 3 bypoll amid allegations of attempts to induce voters.
The direction came after the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate K Rajagopal Reddy transferred Rs 5.24 crore from his family-owned firm's account to 23 people and entities within the constituency.
Responding to an EC letter, Reddy rejected the allegations made by the TRS, including any "formal relationship" with the firm. The BJP candidate, the EC letter said, also denied all 23 alleged bank transactions "categorically, one by one".
"In view of the fact that the representation made by the TRS does not provide any proof in support of the allegations, which have been duly denied by the said candidate, you are directed to keep a close watch on the constituency through various enforcement agencies, based on additional actionable facts that may emerge, according to the extant instructions of the commission on election expenditure monitoring," the EC has told the Telangana CEO.