Tirupati: Poor voter enrollment has candidates worried

Tirupati: The lack of interest among graduates to enrol as voters in the graduates MLC election proves to be a bane for the candidates. It has become an uphill task for them to ensure maximum registrations of graduate voters to win the election which is scheduled to be held in the first quarter of 2023. The parties have conducted formal meetings of cadres and asked them to focus on voter registrations. Yet, the entire onus falls on the candidates for whom it will be difficult to fulfil when the graduates are not at all showing concern about the MLC election.

It may be noted that the election commission has cancelled the 2017 voters' list and any graduate has to enrol their names afresh now to vote in the MLC elections. The voter registration process began on October 1 and will conclude on November 7. Even after 20 days of registration, it was learnt that the enrolment process has been going on at a snail's pace with about only 10 percent of the graduates have enrolled their names so far.

There are about 1.15 lakh graduate voters in 2017 list which may have to go up to nearly two lakh now considering even the moderate growth of graduates in the three erstwhile districts of Chittoor, Nellore and Prakasam. With a poor enrollment so far and only a few days left for the last date, it may send shockers to the candidates and political parties as well.

This has put the candidates under embarrassment as they are helpless. Political parties which supported them could not focus much on this as they are busy with other activities and left it completely to the candidates.

Meanwhile, the ruling YSRCP is in the fray this time in its determined bid to see that it should win graduates and teachers MLC seats too which are being dominated mostly by the Progressive Democratic Front, who have become a thorn in the flesh for the ruling party. Now, the ruling party wants to win the graduates and teachers MLCs also so that they can dominate the council too.

Needless to say that the YSRCP has announced the candidature of P Shyam Prasad Reddy for the graduates MLC election while TDP will be fielding Dr K Srikanth.

PDF has decided to support M Venkateswar Reddy. The post is lying vacant as the term of PDF MLC Y Srinivasulu Reddy will be expiring in March 2023.