Parties demand Patils transfer

BERHAMPUR: With the Supreme Court upholding the High Court’s decision, cancelling the 2009 Assembly election in Athagarh consistency and ordering fresh polls, the demand for the transfer of Kandhamal Collector Rajesh Pravakar Patil, who was the returning officer at Athagarh, is gaining momentum.Political parties, cutting across party lines, are demanding his transfer with the panchayat election slated for next year. Patil, who was then the sub-collector, had rejected nomination papers of the BJD candidate Raja Swain, which the court described as illegal.While BJD Kandhamal general secretary Pradip Mohanty described the act as throttling of democracy, BJP president Ramesh Mohanty appealed to the Election Commission for Patil’s transfer, as he had lost his credibility. The Congress president Radhakant Digal demanded an inquiry into the incident. Patil declined comment.