Intense canvassing by candidates in the fray aside, only about 8% polling was recorded in the first two hours, till 10 a.m., for the two graduates’ constituencies in the Legislative Council elections on March 14. In the next two hours, it crossed 15%.
According to information reaching here from 21 districts (reorganised) in which the Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagar and Warangal-Nalgonda-Khammam Graduates’ Constituencies (six erstwhile districts) are spread, polling began at 8 a.m. with registered graduates (voters) trickling in to polling stations in small numbers.
Candidates of all major parties in the fray such as TRS, BJP, CPI, TJS, TDP and Congress cast their vote in the first two hours. Besides, Ministers, legislators and some officers also voted by 10 a.m. They made an appeal to the registered voters to cast their vote.
A total of 5,31,268 Graduates have registered as voters for the Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagar Constituency and 5,05,565 for the Warangal-Nalgonda-Khammam Constituency, which are spread across 77 Assembly Constituencies.
The Election Commission has set up 799 for the Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagar Constituency and 731 polling stations for the Warangal-Nalgonda-Khammam Constituency. 93 and 71 candidates are in the fray, respectively.
Speaking after casting his vote, working president of TRS and Minister for IT and Industries K.T. Rama Rao appealed to the registered graduates to cast their vote. All other Ministers also cast their votes in their respective districts.
As the number of contesting candidates is high in both the constituencies, voters are understood to be finding it difficult and taking time to identify their choice for the first, second and third preference. The EC officials have arranged jumbo ballot boxes for the Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagar Constituency contested by 93 candidates.
The polling percentage in the last election held for the two graduates’ constituencies in 2015 was 39% and 54%, respectively.
Minister for Agriculture S. Niranjan Reddy who cast his vote an Wanaparthy complimented a voter — T. Mahalaxmi — near Gollapally in Revalli mandal, who was on her way to the polling station at Revalli carrying her three-month old baby. The Minister asked other registered graduates to follow Ms. Mahalaxmi’s example and cast their vote.
Meanwhile, tension prevailed at Nellikuduru in Mahabubabad district where activists of BJP and TRS indulged in a heated altercation on the arrival of BJP candidate G. Premender Reddy at the polling station to enquire about the polling trend. The police intervened and prevented the incident from escalating.
