What Happened on the First Day of Telangana's Municipal Elections?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Hyderabad, Jan 29 (NationPress) On Wednesday, the inaugural day for the upcoming municipal elections in Telangana, a total of 902 nominations were submitted.
As per the State Election Commission (SEC), 890 candidates, which includes 55 independents, submitted their nominations.
The elections for seven municipal corporations and 116 municipalities are scheduled for February 11.
The electoral process commenced on Wednesday with the returning officers disseminating the election notice.
Notably, 382 candidates from the ruling Congress party filed their nominations on the first day.
The main opposition party, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), submitted 258 nominations, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) presented 169 nominations.
The SEC reported that there are 123 urban local bodies participating in the elections, which encompass a total of 2,996 wards.
On Wednesday, the ward-wise electoral rolls for urban local bodies were displayed.
An estimated 52.43 lakh voters are eligible to participate in the municipal elections, comprising 25.62 lakh men, 26.80 lakh women, and 640 others.
State Election Commissioner I. Ranu Kumudini unveiled the schedule for the municipal elections on Tuesday.
The deadline for submitting nominations is January 30, followed by the scrutiny of nominations on January 31.
The SEC indicated that the list of validly nominated candidates will be made public on January 31, with appeals against any rejections to be filed on February 1. These appeals will be resolved by February 2.
The final date for withdrawing candidatures is February 3
, and the definitive list of candidates will be published on the same day.
Polling is set for February 11.
If necessary, re-polling will occur on February 12.
Vote counting is scheduled for February 13.
The SEC will establish 8,203 polling stations and provide 16,031 ballot boxes for the elections.
Additionally, 137 strong rooms and 136 counting centers will be arranged by the state election authority.
In the meantime, the SEC has issued guidelines for candidates regarding the nomination process.
Only three individuals are allowed to enter the Returning Officer's office (including the candidate and/or proposer).
Furthermore, only two vehicles per candidate are permitted within 100 meters of the Returning Officer's office.
A help desk will be available at all Returning Officer's offices, as well as in municipalities and municipal corporations.