Pulivendula (Andhra Pradesh), November 1: Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy staged a sit-in protest outside the Returning Officer's office in Pulivendula on Sunday, alleging that YSRCP polling agents were prevented from entering polling booths during the municipal elections. He protested along with around 70 YSRCP polling agents and questioned election officials over the alleged irregularities, South Politics reported.
Source: South Politics
Jagan spoke to Returning Officer Srinivas and Revenue Divisional Officer Chinnaiah and lodged a complaint. "An election should involve a fair contest. Everywhere, we can see TDP supporters, while CCTV cameras are missing at polling stations," he said, according to the report. He alleged that polling booths had been captured and votes cast in circumstances that raised serious questions about the fairness of the election — allegations the YSRCP repeated in demanding that the State Election Commission (SEC) investigate and order repolling in the affected areas. These are the party's allegations; the SEC had not announced a repoll decision at the time of reporting.
The ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) levelled counter-allegations. TDP MLC Varla Ramaiah accused Jagan and YSRCP leaders of instigating violence during the Pulivendula polling, alleging arson, bogus-voting attempts and stone-pelting intended to disrupt voting, AP Top News reported. Live election coverage reported that 14 vehicles were set on fire in Pulivendula in Kadapa district hours before polling began on Sunday; each side blamed the other for the unrest, and no official attribution had been announced.
Source: AP Top News
Pulivendula, in YSR Kadapa district, is Jagan's home town and Assembly constituency, and the contest there has been charged since the nomination stage: on Friday, YSRCP MP Y.S. Avinash Reddy had alleged a conspiracy to manipulate the municipal elections in the town, and on Saturday a party leader alleged misuse of police machinery — claims the ruling alliance has denied.
Source: IANS via Hi India
Across the state, polling for 92 urban local bodies — 13 municipal corporations and 79 municipalities and nagar panchayats — ran from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 11,378 polling centres, with 99.35 lakh voters deciding the fate of 10,262 candidates. Live reports put statewide turnout at 37.13% by 1 p.m. Earlier in the day, Governor S. Abdul Nazeer and Visakhapatnam MP M. Sribharat cast their votes and appealed for higher turnout, and SEC Anil Chandra Punetha inspected polling in Vijayawada. Repolling, if required, is scheduled for November 2, and counting and results are due on November 3.