Did Congress-Backed Candidates Secure Most Seats in Telangana Panchayat Elections?
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Key Takeaways
Hyderabad, December 11 (NationPress) - Candidates endorsed by the ruling Congress party have successfully claimed a significant number of seats in the inaugural phase of the Gram Panchayat elections in Telangana, with counting ongoing as of Thursday.
Although these elections were conducted on a non-partisan basis, the outcomes clearly indicate that the majority of victorious candidates were supported by the Congress party.
The Congress-backed candidates secured 1,924 Sarpanch positions, while the main opposition party, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), came in second with 975 Sarpanch posts. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) trailed significantly with only 156 posts, and others were elected in 428 Gram Panchayats.
In response to the election results, Mahesh Kumar Goud, president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), stated that the results reflect the public's trust in the Congress government.
The polling took place earlier for 3,834 Sarpanch positions, and counting commenced at 2 p.m.
Results for 3,478 Gram Panchayats were announced by 10 p.m.
The Station Election Commission reported an impressive 84.28% polling rate. Polling started at 7 a.m. and concluded at 1 p.m. for both 3,834 Sarpanch and 27,628 Ward Member posts.
A total of 12,960 candidates contested for the Sarpanch posts, while 65,455 candidates competed for the Ward Member positions.
More than 56 lakh voters were eligible to participate at 37,562 polling centres across 189 mandals.
The election notification included 4,326 Sarpanch and 37,440 Ward Member posts, with no nominations submitted for 5 Sarpanch and 169 Ward Member posts.
Sarpanches for 396 Gram Panchayats and 9,633 Ward Members were elected unanimously.
Legal proceedings have halted elections for one Gram Panchayat and ten Ward Members.
A total of 56,19,430 voters, comprising 27,41,070 males and 28,78,159 females, were eligible to vote in this phase. According to the SEC, 45,15,141 voters exercised their right.
Over one lakh polling staff were deployed for the elections. In 3,461 Gram Panchayats, direct webcasting was implemented for real-time monitoring.
More than 50,000 police personnel were stationed to ensure a peaceful election process.
As per the notification from the State Election Commission last month, the panchayat elections are scheduled in three phases on December 11, 14, and 17 for 12,728 Sarpanch and 1,12,242 Ward Member positions.
A total of 1.66 crore votes in rural regions are eligible for these elections.
Last month, the Telangana Cabinet decided to conduct only Gram Panchayat elections in December due to a Rs 3,000 crore grant from the Centre that will expire by March 31, 2026.
Postponed elections for Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTCs), Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs), and municipal corporations will occur after the High Court delivers its final ruling on the 42% reservation for Backward Classes (BCs).
In October, the High Court annulled a government order granting 42% reservation for BCs in local bodies but permitted elections with a 50% cap on total reservations across all demographics.
The SEC has allocated 17.08% reservation in Gram Panchayats for BCs, reserving 2,176 out of 12,735 Gram Panchayats for them.