BANGALORE: The Congress has accused the Government of adopting a vengeful attitude in the recent election of the president and vice-president of the Bijapur Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC).

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President M. Mallikarjun Kharge told presspersons here on Friday that within two hours of assuming office, the new Janata Dal (S)-Bharatiya Janata Party Government issued an order replacing the nominated members of the Bijapur APMC when the election of the president and vice-president was in progress. It nominated new members and ordered that the entire poll exercise be repeated, which is "anti-democratic and illegal," Mr. Kharge charged.

That resulted in Ninganagouda alias Bapugouda Patil and Ramanagouda Bheemanagouda Patil being elected president and vice-president respectively of the APMC.

The coalition Government is following a "dictatorial and fascist" policy, he charged.

On January 19, the Karnataka High Court directed the Bijapur tahsildar to conduct, within three weeks, elections to the posts of president and vice-president of the local APMC. The High Court passed the order after it was told that elections to the posts had not been held though the APMC elections were held months ago.

Mr. Kharge said the election process was slated to begin at 2.30 p.m. on February 3. When voting was about to take place, some members stalled the process.

At the same time, Deputy Superintendent of Police B.T. Chauhan brought a fax message containing the Government Order dated February 3, 2006. The order said that the nomination of Arun Revanasiddappa Varad and Annegowda Baswanthraigowda Patil had been withdrawn and Mohammad Hussein Kasisab Bagayat and Neelkant Chalavadi nominated in their place, Mr. Kharge said.

Though the order was not applicable to the election process, which had begun, the tahsildar kept postponing the voting. The Deputy Commissioner came to the venue at 4.45 p.m. and directed the tahsildar to conduct elections as per the new order, Mr. Kharge said.

`A farce'

"The entire election was a farce and far from being free, fair and transparent," he said, adding that the Deputy Commissioner and the tahsildar are parties to the arbitrary and illegal conduct of the election.

The Congress will challenge the election in the High Court, Mr. Kharge said.

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