Council Elections: MLAs to vote twice at separate polling stations

Hyderabad: Legislators in Telangana will vote twice to elect two Council members under the MLA quota in two separate polling stations on January 29.

According to a notification issued by the Election Commission, separate sets of ballot papers will be prepared for two by-elections. The colour of ballot paper will be different, which may preferably be white and pink. In a letter to the returning officer, the commission said separate polling stations, preferably by making a partition, may be made. Outside each polling station a notice may be displayed indicating, for example, ‘polling station for by- election to the Telangana Legislative Council to fill up the seat falling vacant due to resignation of Kadiyam Srihari’ and ‘polling station for by- election to the Telangana Legislative Council to fill up the seat falling vacant due to resignation of Padi Kowshik Reddy’.

As per EC instructions, separate ballot boxes should be used for the by- elections. Separate sets of electoral rolls may be used for two polling stations; each polling station would be manned by a separate set of officers; counting of ballot papers may also be taken up separately.

Rules have been changed even for the contesting candidates. Each candidate should have to mention in his/her nomination paper clearly as to which election he/she intends to contest by indicating ‘by-election to the Telangana Legislative Council to fill up the seat falling vacant due to resignation of Kadiyam Srihari’ and ‘By-election to the Telangana Legislative Council to fill up the seat falling vacant due to resignation of Padi Kowshik Reddy’. The commission has approved to fix ‘committee hall no. 1 in the Assembly buildings as the place of poll for the by-elections. It has approved the use of ‘wooden ballot box’ for the by-elections.