Barring minor incidents, polling for the second phase of elections to Zilla Parishad (ZPTC) and Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) seats passed off peacefully on Friday.
The election was notified for 180 ZPTCs and 1913 MPTCs, of which one ZPTC and 63 MPTCs had been declared elected unanimously.
Brisk polling was reported in all the 10,371 polling stations and the overall polling percentage was 77.63 with 39.35 lakh voters of the total 50.4 lakh exercising their franchise.
Yadadri-Bhongir district registered maximum polling of 85.33 per cent followed closely by Suryapet with 84.15 per cent. Nalgonda witnessed 82.56 per cent polling.
The election officials ensured that those standing in queues at 5 pm were given slips so that they were not denied the opportunity to exercise their franchise.
In all, 805 candidates were in the fray for the ZPTC posts and close to 6,000 contested for MPTC seats from different parties as well as independents.
The third and last phase would be held on May 14, but the results of the ZPTC, MPTC elections would be declared on May 27 after the completion of the Lok Sabha election process.
Meanwhile, voters in Tivti village of Pardi (B) gram panchayat of Boath Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency in Adilabad district boycotted the second phase Zilla Parishad election.
The 167 voters were protesting against shifting of the polling station from their village to the gram panchayat headquarters located about 10 km away and, hence, stayed away from voting.
Clash in Suryapet
Activists of the TRS and the Congress clashed in Piklanayak Tanda of Chintapalem mandal in Suryapet district. Trouble began when a TRS worker raised slogans against TPCC president N. Uttam Kumar Reddy who was campaigning for the party’s candidates in the third phase.
Objecting to the criticism of the TPCC president, Congress workers attacked the TRS worker which resulted in retaliation by ruling party supporters.
Mr. Reddy asked the Congress workers to maintain restraint and ensured that normalcy was restored.
However, activists of the two sides were said to have clashed immediately after Mr. Reddy left the village, prompting the police to disperse the mobs.
Tense situation prevailed at Bhupalpally for some time as women belonging to SC/ST communities staged an impromptu protest, demanding action against Gandra Jyoti, wife of Congress MLA G. Venkataramana Reddy, who recently switched loyalties to the TRS.
The women alleged that Ms. Jyoti used terse language against them.
