Shas leader Aryeh Deri went on the offensive after internal haredi infighting caused the party's leading mayoral candidate in Elad to be disqualified from the upcoming municipal elections.
According to Deri, the politicians that caused Yitzchak Pindrus' candidacy to be nullified were rebelling against the rabbinic leadership, who had endorsed Pindrus.
"We had a very difficult round, not easy, there were many days and nights, and now they took the elections in inappropriate ways," said Deri at a Shas conference.
"We had decided that for the sake of unity, there wouldn't be a desecration of God's name....we decided to run together in order not to torpedo the city's work."
"The town of Elad is stunned and shocked by the disgrace ...from going to the courts and using private investigators while desecrating the Sabbath and holidays ... and other disgraceful methods," added Knesset Member Yinon Azoulay.
"There is a reign of fear here in the city, a regime of division, a regime of incitement and uprooting, and in the previous term, serious and illegal acts were committed in order to steal the city's [elections]," said Azoulay.
Both the Sephardic Shas and Ashkenazic-Lithuanian party had thrown their support behind Yitzchak Pindrus in the Elad mayoral race. The haredi city of Elad, located near the city of Modiin, is seen as a hub of Shas grassroots support. The decision to run together was only agreed upon at the last minute after deep divisions between the haredi's Ashkenazic and Sephardic political establishment burst into the open.
However, Pindrus' candidacy was disqualified by the Central District Court earlier this week after local haredi politicos proved that Pindrus did not live in Elad, as required by law. Private investigators hired by local politicians showed that Pindrus never slept at his Elad address and that his Elad apartment was unfurnished.