TDP wrests Pulivendula ZPTC, makes dent in Jagan's fortress (Lead)

Amaravati, Aug 14 (IANS) In a huge setback to the YSR Congress Party, the Telugu Desam Party on Thursday wrested the Pulivendula ZPTC seat in the home constituency of former Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.

The TDP won the by-election to Pulivendula Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) by a huge margin to make big inroads in Pulivendula, seen as the fortress of the YSR family.

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) was also leading in Ontimitta ZPTC as the counting of votes was underway amid the boycott by YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), which alleged rigging in the polling held on Tuesday and demanded a re-poll in both the constituencies.

In Pulivendula, TDP candidate Latha Reddy defeated Hemanth Reddy of YSRCP by a margin of 6,035 votes.

Latha Reddy, wife of former MLC and the ruling party’s Pulivendula constituency in-charge, Mareddy Ravindra Reddy (B Tech Ravi), polled 6,716 votes while the YSRCP candidate secured only 683 votes.

The candidate of Congress and eight independents secured fewer than 100 votes. About 74 per cent polling was recorded in Pulivendula ZPTC, which has 10,600 voters.

The bypoll for Pulivendula ZPTC was necessitated by the death of ZPTC member T. Maheshwar Reddy of YSRCP. The opposition party had fielded his son, Hemanth Reddy.

Polling was conducted for the first time in three decades as candidates backed by the YSR family have been winning the seat unanimously. The TDP-led NDA described the conduct of polling as "restoration of democracy".

Minister for Backward Classes Welfare S. Savitha termed the TDP’s win as a victory of democracy in Pulivendula. She said, "Pulivendula would celebrate Independence, just a day before Independence Day."

She exuded confidence that the TDP would capture Jagan’s fortress in the next Assembly elections.

Pulivendula Assembly seat has been the pocket borough of the YSR family for nearly five decades. The family has never lost an election here since 1978, when Jagan's father and former Chief Minister Y. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR) scored his first victory from here.

In Ontimitta ZPTC, TDP was leading by a huge margin of over 3,000 votes. TDP's Muddu Krishna Reddy had polled 6,270 votes while YSRCP's Iragamreddy Subbareddy secured 3,165 votes.

The constituency, which has 24,000 voters, witnessed 86 per cent polling.

The bypoll for Ontimitta was necessitated as its member, Akepati Amarnath Reddy of YSRCP, resigned after winning the Rajampet Assembly election last year.

Counting of votes began at 8 a.m. at Maulana Azad National Urdu University polytechnic in Kadapa town.

As many as 100 officials, including 30 supervisors, 60 counting assistants and three assistant statistical officers, were deployed for counting.

Alleging large-scale irregularities in the polling, YSRCP boycotted the counting. The YSRCP accused TDP of booth capturing, rigging and other electoral malpractices. It demanded the cancellation of the polling and the conduct of a re-poll.

Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday demanded fresh polling for the by-election to Pulivendula and Ontimitta ZPTCs under the supervision of Central forces and in a fair manner. He termed the polling held on August 12 a ‘mockery of democracy’.

He alleged that all polling agents of YSRCP were driven away along with the party sympathisers whose forms and slips were snatched and torn away.

He also announced that YSRCP candidates will move the court seeking to cancel the elections.

--IANS

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