Andhra ULB Polls: Repolling Held at 13 Stations After Booth-Capturing Allegations

Repolling was held at 13 polling stations across seven urban local bodies (ULBs) in Andhra Pradesh on Monday following allegations of booth capturing and electoral irregularities during the November 1 local body elections.

Polling began at 7 am and was scheduled to continue until 5 pm. The State Election Commission (SEC), headed by State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha, ordered fresh polling at the affected stations after receiving reports from district administrations and election authorities that the polling process had been vitiated.

In YSR Kadapa district, repolling was ordered at three polling stations in Jammalamadugu Municipality, covering wards 3, 17 and 29, one station in Ward 15 of Kadapa Municipal Corporation, and four stations in Pulivendula Municipality, covering wards 1, 3, 7 and 8.

In Palnadu district, two polling stations in Ward 23 of Macherla Municipality went for repolling. Anantapuramu Municipal Corporation's Ward 30 and Chimakurthy Municipality's Ward 14 in Prakasam district were also included. An additional station in Ward 36 of Tirupati Municipal Corporation was covered in the expanded repolling reports.

YSR Congress Party chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy alleged widespread irregularities in Pulivendula, claiming party agents were prevented from entering or forced out of several polling stations. He demanded repolling across the constituency.

Meanwhile, the November 1 elections across 100 urban local bodies recorded a reported turnout of 60.96 per cent, with approximately 59.06 lakh votes polled out of 96.89 lakh registered voters.

Counting of votes is scheduled for November 3 from 8 am at 138 centres. The SEC has also scheduled MPTC and ZPTC elections for November 5, with counting on November 7.