Controversial Election Commissioner Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar is scheduled to address his last press conference on March 31, a few hours before his retirement.
He had convened the press conference in the morning, as he is to retire in the evening.
The Raj Bhavan had already appointed retired chief secretary Nilam Sahwney as the new State Election Commissioner, who will take over from Nimmagadda.
Nimmagadda is the only State Election Commissioner who had become popular and unpopular too during his tenure from 2016.
He fought several piercing legal battles against the state government headed by chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy.
He is accused of being loyal to TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu and had even found meeting two BJP leaders – Sujana Chowdary and Kamineni Srinivas – both from BJP, but known to have close links with Chandrababu Naidu – in a hotel in Hyderabad, when his legal battle against the government was in progress.
He took one-side decision and postponed the local body elections on March 15, 2020 citing Covid 19. He reacted only to the representations of the TDP and CPI, which have smelt their defeat in the elections and made hue and cry.
As state election commissioner, Nimmagadda did not consult the state government, nor did he seek the opinion of the ruling YSR Congress, before announcing the postponement of the election.
Since then, Nimmagadda had earned supporters and critics as well and his tenure was marked with a battle against the government.
However, he was able to complete the panchayat and municipal elections, while leaving the parishad elections to his successor.
It is to be seen what he has in his mind to speak when he meets the media as his last task before retirement.
