Chandigarh, Dec 12 (PTI) The BJP on Thursday lashed out at the AAP government in Punjab, claiming that its candidates for the December 21 urban local body polls were being threatened.

Elections to five municipal corporations -- Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala and Phagwara -- along with 44 municipal councils and nagar panchayats in Punjab will be held on December 21.

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In a letter to Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria seeking free and fair elections, the BJP said, "The state government, influenced by partisan interests, is using the state machinery to gain political mileage. Such actions are jeopardising the democratic process and undermining public trust in the fairness of the elections."

The BJP also accused AAP workers and leaders of tearing the nomination forms of its candidates in the presence of police, besides preventing them from entering the office of the returning officers to file their nominations.

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"The opposition candidates are being threatened with dire consequences and false cases. The AAP government appears determined to win the elections by any means, thus effectively murdering the democratic process," the BJP said, adding that such actions are not only unconstitutional, but also undermine the fundamental rights of the candidates and the electorate.

The opposition party also sought the governor to direct the state government to take all necessary steps to ensure that the municipal elections are conducted in a transparent and impartial manner.

"Adequate security forces should be deployed in the state from the nomination filing stage till the completion of elections. Also, security should be ensured for all the candidates to prevent incidents of intimidation or violence," the BJP said, adding that videography should be done to maintain transparency and accountability.

"Ensure that nomination forms are not rejected on frivolous or unnecessary grounds, and also take strict action against officials found to be acting in a partisan manner or engaging in misconduct," it added.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)