By IANS,
Hyderabad : Nearly a month after his reinstatement as the Andhra Pradesh police chief, S.S.P. Yadav has become embroiled in a fresh controversy by shooting off letters to the state’s chief electoral officer demanding to know why was he sacked during the recent polls.
The director general of police wrote three letters during the last few days to Chief Electoral Officer I.V. Subba Rao, asking him to spell out the reasons for his removal during the polls when overriding administrative powers rested with the state Election Commission.
Taking a serious note of the row between the two top officials, Chief Secretary Ramakant Reddy Wednesday called them separately and sought an explanation.
Subba Rao was the first to meet the chief secretary and provide him all details. Later, the police chief turned up before the top bureaucrat to present his case.
This followed intervention by Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. Opposition parties tried to target him as immediately after being sworn-in for the second term last month he had reinstated Yadav as the state DGP.
The main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) alleged that the chief minister was behind the police chief’s action of questioning the decisions of the Election Commission of India, a constitutional body.
Communist Party of India (CPI) state secretary K. Narayana Wednesday urged the chief minister to rein in the police chief. He also threatened to launch an agitation if Yadav failed to stop sending letters to Subba Rao.
Subba Rao, who responded to Yadav’s first two letters by sending a copy of the transfer orders issued by the Election Commission of India, referred the third letter to the Election Commission of India.
Subba Rao told Yadav that he only acted as the messenger of the poll panel in conveying the news to him.
Yadav was removed as the state director general of police in March by the Election Commission for violating the election code of conduct.
Acting on a complaint by the opposition parties, the poll panel transferred the Bihar cadre police officer in March for praising the state government and the chief minister after the announcement of poll schedule.
A.K. Mohanty was appointed the police chief in his place by the government on the recommendation of the poll panel.
With the Congress retaining power, Rajasekhara Reddy brought Yadav back as the police chief.