TDP wrests Pulivendula ZPTC, makes dent in Jagan's fortress
The TDP won the by-election to Pulivendula Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) by a huge margin to make big inroads in Pulivendula, seen as the fortress of the YSR family.
The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) was also leading in Ontimitta ZPTC as the counting of votes was underway amid the boycott by YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), which alleged rigging in the polling held on Tuesday and demanded a re-poll in both the constituencies.
In Pulivendula, TDP candidate Latha Reddy defeated Hemanth Reddy of YSRCP by a margin of 6,035 votes.
Latha Reddy, wife of former MLC and the ruling party's Pulivendula constituency in-charge, Mareddy Ravindra Reddy (B Tech Ravi), polled 6,716 votes while the YSRCP candidate secured only 683 votes.
The candidate of Congress and eight independents secured fewer than 100 votes. About 74 per cent polling was recorded in Pulivendula ZPTC, which has 10,600 voters.
The bypoll for Pulivendula ZPTC was necessitated by the death of ZPTC member T. Maheshwar Reddy of YSRCP. The opposition party had fielded his son, Hemanth Reddy.
Polling was conducted for the first time in three decades as candidates backed by the YSR family have been winning the seat unanimously. The TDP-led NDA described the conduct of polling as "restoration of democracy".
Minister for Backward Classes Welfare S. Savitha termed the TDP's win as a victory of democracy in Pulivendula. She said, "Pulivendula would celebrate Independence, just a day before Independence Day."
She exuded confidence that the TDP would capture Jagan's fortress in the next Assembly elections.
Pulivendula Assembly seat has been the pocket borough of the YSR family for nearly five decades. The family has never lost an election here since 1978, when Jagan's father and former Chief Minister Y. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR) scored his first victory from here.
In Ontimitta ZPTC, TDP was leading by a huge margin of over 3,000 votes. TDP's Muddu Krishna Reddy had polled 6,270 votes while YSRCP's Iragamreddy Subbareddy secured 3,165 votes.
The constituency, which has 24,000 voters, witnessed 86 per cent polling.
The bypoll for Ontimitta was necessitated as its member, Akepati Amarnath Reddy of YSRCP, resigned after winning the Rajampet Assembly election last year.
Counting of votes began at 8 a.m. at Maulana Azad National Urdu University polytechnic in Kadapa town.
As many as 100 officials, including 30 supervisors, 60 counting assistants and three assistant statistical officers, were deployed for counting.
Alleging large-scale irregularities in the polling, YSRCP boycotted the counting. The YSRCP accused TDP of booth capturing, rigging and other electoral malpractices. It demanded the cancellation of the polling and the conduct of a re-poll.
Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday demanded fresh polling for the by-election to Pulivendula and Ontimitta ZPTCs under the supervision of Central forces and in a fair manner. He termed the polling held on August 12 a 'mockery of democracy'.
He alleged that all polling agents of YSRCP were driven away along with the party sympathisers whose forms and slips were snatched and torn away.
He also announced that YSRCP candidates will move the court seeking to cancel the elections.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
28 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Self-reliance, use of technology, health competition: Delhi Police chief outlines 3 focus areas on I-Day
Delhi Police Commissioner S B K Singh Friday, urged the force to strive for self-reliance, the use of technology and healthy competition. During the Independence Day celebrations at the Delhi Police headquarters, the police chief, while addressing the force, reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision on these three points, which he had outlined at the Red Fort. During his address, Singh directed Delhi Police units to work on 'atmanirbharta' (self-reliance) and come up with a proposal within 15 days. The aim is to make the Delhi Police self-reliant on as many fronts to stop dependence on other units for things like commandos, bomb disposal squads and wireless sets, he said. 'Although the Delhi Police have always been making the best use of technology and we are way ahead on this front, there is still a need to go further,' he said. 'We need to embrace this principle at an individual and as well as at the organisational level.' He advised the units and districts of the Delhi Police to work on this principle to develop a sense of healthy competition among themselves. While expressing his concern, the police commissioner said that despite working so hard, even beyond working hours, the force has not been able to win the trust of the public as it should have. He further suggested that every police personnel needs to come out of a feudalistic mindset and shift attitude from 'Shasak Bhav' to 'Sewa Bhav' to make the public feel more comfortable approaching the police in case of need. The force's head also took the opportunity to congratulate the 18 officers and personnel of Delhi Police who have been awarded police medals for 'distinguished service' and 'meritorious service' on the occasion of Independence Day, acknowledging their hard work and dedication.
Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
Voter Adhikar Yatra: Bihar minister takes dig at Rahul Gandhi; tells him to thank Nitish for smooth roads making 'big yatra' possible
Rahul Gandhi (left), NItish Kumar (TOI) Bihar minister Ashok Choudhary on Sunday took a sharp dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi ahead of the launch of the party's 'Voter Adhikar Yatra', saying he should thank chief minister Nitish Kumar for improving road infrastructure in the state, which made the rally possible, reported news agency ANI. 'Rahul Gandhi should thank Nitish Kumar, for the roads that used to be in such bad shape are now so smooth that Rahul Gandhi is even able to take out a Yatra... He should be grateful that such a big Yatra will be possible due to Nitish Kumar's roads,' Choudhary said, as quoted by the agency. The Congress-led yatra is being launched from Sasaram in protest against the election commission's special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar. The party, along with INDIA block allies, alleges large-scale voter exclusion and 'vote theft'. Senior leaders including RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, former Bihar deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav, Congress president mallikarjun kharge and Rahul Gandhi are expected to participate. Preparations for the event are underway outside in Patna. Bihar leader of opposition Tejashwi Yadav, addressing the media on Saturday, said the campaign aims to raise awareness among voters whose names have been excluded from the electoral list. "We are starting the 'Vote Adhikar Yatra' from Sasaram tomorrow. Tomorrow, we will all be with the Mahagathbandhan allies. We will visit several districts, and our effort will be to make people aware so that no voter's name is left out. We also have fought for this and got a relief from the Supreme Court in this matter, whether it is the Supreme Court direction to the Election Commission of India to publish the list of 65 lakh persons excluded or deleted from the Bihar draft electoral voters list, along with the reasons," Yadav said. Calling the yatra as a 'historical journey', Tejashwi said the Mahagathbandhan would take its message to multiple districts and seek public support. "Tomorrow, Rahul Gandhi and other leaders of the Mahagathbandhan will go among the people and make them aware of voter rights. Along with this, we will also raise the local issues. We will also convey what our vision would be if we form our government. This is going to be a historical journey, and we will get the blessings of the Bihar voters," he added. The yatra will begin on Sunday, from Sasaram, Bihar.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Bengaluru building fire leaves 5 dead; owners arrested
A fire broke out in a building in the Nagarathpete area of Bengaluru on Saturday, killing five people, officials said. Independence Day 2025 Modi signals new push for tech independence with local chips Before Trump, British used tariffs to kill Indian textile Bank of Azad Hind: When Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose gave India its own currency Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, accompanied by Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh, visited the site on Sunday to assess the situation. While speaking to ANI, Police Commissioner Singh said, "The Fire Department is preliminarily saying that the fire was caused due to a short circuit. We have arrested the owners of these two buildings... No safety guidelines were followed by them. They constructed extra floors without any permission..." Additionally, Deputy CM Shivakumar assured that strict action would be taken against those violating building norms. "It is the fault of the building owner. I am going to issue a notice to everyone. They have to strengthen the building. All buildings here are illegal buildings... If they don't strengthen the buildings, we will have to break all of them. I have instructed the authorities to take strict action here... Five people died here. All were from Rajasthan... The government has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each... What has happened is very painful..." Shivakumar said. Live Events Visuals from the site showed fire officials carrying out rescue and relief operations.
