HYDERABAD: Considering the ongoing pandemic, the Telangana State Election Commission (TSEC) decided on Thursday to curtail the campaigning period for the elections to seven Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and nine casual vacancies.
No rallies, public meetings, street plays, meetings will be allowed on the campaigning days from 7 pm to 8 am with immediate effect. The TSEC has extended the silence period for rallies, public meetings, bike rallies or any gathering for campaigning purposes to 72 hours before polling day. Therefore, campaigning must end at 5 pm on April 27.
The Commission noted that several instances of election meetings and campaigning wherein norms of social distancing and wearing of masks have been flouted, which is a blatant disregard of the TSEC Covid-19 guidelines.
Earlier in the day, a division bench of the Telangana High Court refused to take up a lunch motion petition filed by Congress leader Shabbir Ali for cancelling the elections to the seven ULBs, which are scheduled to be held on April 30, in view of the prevailing pandemic. Recently, a single-judge HC bench had rejected a similar plea made by the leader and asked him to approach the TSEC. With the division bench not taking up his lunch motion petition, Shabbir Ali may file a regular petition.
The Forum for Good Governance (FGG) also requested the TSEC on Thursday to postpone the elections to the seven ULBs for two months, in view of the rising Covid-19 cases. In the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, the SEC used its discretionary powers, and postponed the elections to municipalities, but here in Telangana, SEC is not able to take the decision, C Parthasarathi by FGG Secretary, M Padmanabha Reddy said in his letter to the TSEC.
251 in fray for KMC polls
As many as 251 candidates are in the fray for Khammam Municipal Corporation (KMC) elections. Of the 60 wards in KMC, TRS candidate, Chava Madhuri has been elected unanimously from Ward 10. For Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation, the final list of contesting candidates has not been announced till the last reports came in.For Siddipet municipality, 236 candidates are contesting in 43 wards; 66 candidates in Atchampet (20 wards); 93 in Nakrekal (20 wards); 112 candidates in Jadcherla (27 wards); and in Kothur, 49 candidates are in the fray for 20 wards.