The maiden election to Kuppam Municipality recorded 76.49% of voting in 24 wards by the time the poll proceedings came to an ended at 5 p.m. on Monday.
The police had a tough task to regulate the crowd in the streets in Kuppam, with both the ruling YSR Congress Party and opposition Telugu Desam Party leaders and activists thronging the polling stations.
Right from 5 a.m., groups of activists of both the parties hit the streets, despite the restrictions in place. Distribution of food packets were seen in many wards.
Mild tension gripped Kuppam when TDP activists stopped a private bus near the party office. They alleged that the bus carried fake voters from Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu. The TDP cadres forced the passengers to show their identity cards.
Mild lathi-charge
The police personnel on duty rushed to the spot and tried to control the situation as the TDP cadres demanded arrest of the commuters. To disperse the cadres, the police resorted to a mild lathi-charge. Later, the commuters were taken to the area police station and let off after collecting details of their whereabouts.
The police took the former MLC and TDP leader of Shantipuram mandal, G. Srinivasulu into custody. He was bound over. The YSRCP cadres too handed over half a dozen strangers to the police, alleging that the TDP had brought outsiders into Kuppam.
Right from Sunday midnight till Monday afternoon, high drama prevailed in Kuppam with the TDP cadres expecting the arrival of the party national president N. Chandrababu Naidu to examine the voting pattern. The police personnel were in confusion for a while about Mr. Naidu’s schedule.
Meanwhile, the police made elaborate bandobast at all arterial junctions of Kuppam. The counting of votes will be done on Wednesday.
