HYDERABAD: Uncertainty over whether Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) and Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) elections will be held before or after the proposed districts reorganisation has led to confusion among political parties in the state.
Parties are divided over how to approach the elections in the wake of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s announcement that a committee, headed by a retired judge, would be appointed to rationalise districts in line with Parliamentary or Assembly constituencies.
The ruling Congress is reportedly inclined towards reducing the number of districts before conducting the local body elections.
According to sources, the chief minister has indicated that holding elections before reorganisation could lead to technical and legal complications.
The opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has strongly opposed any move to alter district jurisdictions at this stage. It may be recalled that the previous K Chandrasekhar Rao-led government carried out district reorganisation in 2017, following which new zilla and mandal parishads were constituted and elections were held in 2019.
Govt to take all political parties into confidence
Sources said that the government is seriously considering conducting the ZPTC and MPTC elections only after the committee submits its report and the matter is discussed in the Assembly. The Congress leadership is keen on taking all political parties into confidence before arriving at a final decision.
With the present government re-examining the district framework, speculation is rife over the extent to which the number of districts may be reduced, and which of the existing districts may be merged or retained. This uncertainty has triggered anxiety among aspirants for zilla parishad chairperson and mandal parishad president posts, as the government’s decision is expected to have a direct bearing on their political prospects.
Siricilla among districts likely to be merged
Meanwhile, there is speculation that districts having fewer than 10 to 12 mandals may be merged with neighbouring districts. Sources indicated that Rajanna-Siricilla, Jangaon, Peddapalli, Medak or Siddipet, Gadwal or Wanaparthy, Mahbubabad, Hanamkonda, Bhupalapalli and Asifabad are among those likely to be merged.
Sources further stated that the chief minister favours that the number of districts will be same as the number of Lok Sabha constituencies after delimitation, which he expects to rise to between 19 and 22 from the present 17.
In this context, the government is planning to appoint a committee, headed by a retired high court judge to study the issue and submit recommendations.
Women voters outnumber men in ULBs
Hyderabad: The Telangana State Election Commission (TSEC) on Tuesday published the final ward-wise voter lists for the upcoming municipal elections. As per the lists, there are a total of 52,43,023 voters in 123 urban local bodies (ULBs) -- 366 wards in six municipal corporations and 2,630 wards in 117 municipalities.
Of these, 25,62,369 are male voters and 26,80,014 female voters while 640 belong to third gender. The Nizamabad Municipal Corporation has the highest number of voters (3,480,51), followed by Karimnagar Municipal Corporation (3,40,580), Mahbubnagar Municipal Corporation (197841), Ramagundam Municipal Corporation (1,83,049) and Mancherial Municipal Corporation (1,81,778). On Tuesday, the SEC will publish the draft list of polling stations, which will also be uploaded on the T-Poll portal.
The SEC, meanwhile, informed that the final voter lists, along with photographs and polling station information, will be displayed on January 16, ward-wise at the respective polling stations by the commissioners of the concerned municipalities and municipal corporations.
Ponguleti sure of Congress bagging over 80% seats
Khammam: Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy on Tuesday expressed confidence in the Congress securing a majority of seats in the upcoming municipal elections. Addressing the gathering at an event organised to felicitate 60 newly elected sarpanches in Aswaraopet, he said: “It won’t be a surprise if the Congress bags more than 80 per cent seats.” Taking a dig at the opposition for criticising the proposal to reorganise the districts, he said: “Threats of setting the state on fire won’t work with the people. The Congress government intends to rectify the unscientific reorganisation of districts carried out in the past.” He further said: “Though the people delivered a clear verdict against the previous rulers in the Assembly, Lok Sabha and panchayat elections, the Opposition has not learned its lesson. Those who once ruled the state are now resorting to aggressive rhetoric. They will surely face another humiliation in the municipal elections.” Later in the day, the minister also felicitated 81 sarpanches during
a programme organised by
MLA Matta Ragamayi Dayanand
in Sattupalli.