After more than a week of intense and vitriolic campaign, over 74 lakh eligible voters took part today in the elections to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation or GHMC. Polling began at 7 AM.
The polling for Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) election was so far peaceful with 18.20 per cent turnout reported till noon on Tuesday. The Telangana State Election Commission (SEC) ordered repoll in all 69 polling stations of Ward number 26 after it was found that the symbol of CPI(M) was printed in the ballot paper instead of CPI, an official release said.
The repoll would be held on December 3 from 7 AM to 6 PM in all the 69 polling stations. The CPI complained to the election authorities on the matter.
The Commission has instructed the election authority and GHMC to replace the Returning Officer for conduct of fresh poll. In view of the repoll, publication, broadcasting and telecasting of Exit polls on GHMC elections is banned till 6 PM on December 3, the SEC said. Till 1 pm, the vote percentage was 18.20 percent.
The civic body election is a high-stakes battle for the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi, the BJP, trying to make inroads, and Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM. This has been the most fiercely and bitterly fought municipal elections ever in Hyderabad with a high-octane campaign by the BJP that flew in national leaders - like Amit Shah, JP Nadda and Yogi Adityanath - hoping to convince Hyderabad that a change was needed.
