Voting for the bypoll to Huzurabad assembly constituency in Telangana began amid tight security arrangements on Saturday. Polling began at 7 am and would continue till 7 pm in 306 polling stations in the constituency.
As many as 2,37,036 voters, including 1,17,933 male and 1,19,102 female voters, will be able to exercise their franchise.
Officials said 1,715 polling personnel, including Presiding Officers, have been posted on election duty. The administration has also made arrangements to follow precautions against Covid-19.
Karimnagar Police Commissioner V Satyanarayana said 107 polling stations have been identified as sensitive and additional forces are deployed there. As many as 3,865 police personnel have been stationed to ensure peaceful voting. Twenty companies of central forces are also deployed.
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The by-election has been necessitated in Huzurabad in view of the resignation of Eatala Rajender in June following his removal from the state cabinet over allegations of land grabbing. Rajender, who dismissed the charges, has quit TRS and joined the BJP. He is seeking re-election on BJP ticket.
Though as many as 30 candidates are in the fray, the main contest is among Gellu Srinivas Yadav (TRS), Eatala Rajender (BJP) and Venkat Balmoori (Congress). The bypoll is a do-or-die battle for Rajender, while it is significant for the BJP as it aims at emerging as the alternative to ruling TRS in the 2023 Legislative Assembly elections.
It is crucial for the TRS as well as it would like to demonstrate that its dominance in state politics continues unchallenged. The counting of votes would be taken up on November 2.
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