May 13th 2024.
Today, the 17 Lok Sabha constituencies in Telangana are bustling with activity as polling is underway. According to officials, the process commenced at 7 a.m. with all polling stations across the state equipped with tight security measures.
Before the actual polling began, a mock polling session was conducted at 5:30 a.m., as informed by an official. With more than 3.17 crore eligible voters, this election will determine the fate of 525 candidates.
It is a closely fought battle between three major parties - the ruling Congress, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, and the Bharatiya Janata Party - in the majority of the constituencies. In addition to this, the by-election for the Secunderabad Cantonment Assembly constituency in Hyderabad is also underway. This seat was left vacant after the unfortunate passing of sitting MLA Lasya Nanditha in a road accident earlier this year, just three months after her victory in the Assembly elections.
To ensure a smooth and peaceful conduct of the elections, the Election Commission has made extensive arrangements. There are a total of 35,809 polling stations set up across the state, with over 2.94 lakh personnel, including almost a lakh security personnel, on duty. Additionally, 160 companies of Central forces have also been deployed.
In terms of candidates, the Secunderabad constituency has the highest number at 45, closely followed by Medak with 44 candidates in the fray. Chevella and Peddapalle constituencies have 43 candidates each, while Warangal and Adilabad have 42 and 12 candidates respectively.
Some notable names in the race for a seat in the Lok Sabha include Union Minister and State BJP President G. Kishan Reddy, who is seeking re-election from Secunderabad, BJP National General Secretary and current MP from Karimnagar, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, who is contesting again from the same seat, and BJP National Vice-President D.K. Aruna, who is in the fray from Mahabubnagar. AIMIM President Asaduddin Owaisi is also vying for a fifth consecutive term from Hyderabad.
In the previous elections held in 2019, the BRS emerged victorious in nine seats, while the BJP won four seats. The Congress managed to secure three seats, and the AIMIM retained their lone seat. Polling will continue till 6 p.m. in 106 Assembly constituencies, while in 13 constituencies under five Lok Sabha seats affected by left-wing extremism, polling will conclude at 4 p.m. Those in line to vote at the time of closure will be allowed to cast their vote.
It is worth noting that during the Assembly elections held in November 2023, Telangana recorded a turnout of 71.34%, which was slightly lower than the 73.73% turnout in the 2018 Assembly elections. However, in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the turnout decreased to 62.11%.
For this election, a total of 1,05,019 balloting units, 44,569 control units, and 48,134 VVPATs have been deployed. To attend to any complaints regarding the malfunctioning of Electronic Voting Machines, three ECIL engineers have been assigned to each Assembly constituency.
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