Vijayawada: In a major development, Andhra Pradesh High Court today cancelled the Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTC) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTC) elections, including Kotia gram panchayat polls in Odisha’s Koraput district, which were held in April this year.
The High Court also directed the State Election Commission to issue fresh notification and conduct fresh elections.
The court cancelled the elections to the panchayat and local body polls which were held on April 7 on the ground that the four-week period for the enforcement of model code of conduct was not being followed.
As per the Supreme Court ruling, there should be at least four weeks gap between the election notification and the polling date, the High Court said.
Notably, the Odisha Government has filed a contempt petition in the Supreme Court over Andhra Pradesh’s elections in the villages under Kotia GP in Koraput district.