The first phase of the Telangana Gram Panchayat elections is happening today, Thursday, December 11. Voting began at 7 a.m. for a huge number of posts, marking the start of a three-phase electoral exercise that is being watched closely, even though the polls are held on a non-party basis.
Also Read | The S24 Ultra Steal: How to Get ₹35,000 Off During the Flipkart Buy Buy Sale
The Day’s Logistics
-
Posts in Play: 3,834 Sarpanch posts and 27,628 Ward Member posts are going to the ballot today.
-
Voter Base: More than 56 lakh voters are eligible to cast their votes across 37,562 polling centers.
-
Timing: Polling continues until 1 p.m. That happened. And then the counting of votes will be taken up immediately from 2 p.m.
-
Security: It’s tight. Over 50,000 police personnel are deployed, and direct webcasting has been arranged in 3,461 Gram Panchayats for real-time monitoring by District Collectors and General Observers. All arrangements have been made for peaceful, free, and fair elections, or nothing.
The Bigger Picture: Politics, Money, and Lapsable Funds
These polls are seen as an early test for the ruling Congress and the opposition BRS and BJP, even if their symbols aren’t officially on the ballot.
-
The Financial Deadline: The thing is, the state cabinet rushed to hold these Panchayat elections this month because a crucial Rs 3,000 crore grant from the Union government is due to lapse by March 31, 2026. Securing the elected bodies ensures the state can claim these funds.
Also Read | The S24 Ultra Steal: How to Get ₹35,000 Off During the Flipkart Buy Buy Sale
-
Unanimous Winners: In this phase, 396 Gram Panchayats already have their Sarpanches, and 9,633 Ward Members have been elected unanimously, reducing the number of posts actually going to vote today.
-
Code Violations: The enforcement teams have been busy. So far, they have seized inducements—cash, liquor, drugs, precious metals, and other items—worth a staggering Rs 8.20 crore. And here’s the kicker: 229 FIRs have already been registered for violations of the Model Code of Conduct.
The Reservation Hurdle
The elections for MPTCs, ZPTCs, and municipal corporations are currently paused, waiting for the High Court’s final orders on 42 per cent reservation for Backward Classes (BCs). For the ongoing Panchayat polls, the State Election Commission (SEC) has provided 17.08 per cent reservation for BCs, keeping the overall reservation for all sections under the 50 per cent cap as mandated by the High Court.
The full three-phase election schedule continues on December 14 and 17, covering a total of 12,728 Sarpanch posts and 1,12,242 Ward Member posts across the state. It’s an ongoing situation until the 17th.
Also Read | The S24 Ultra Steal: How to Get ₹35,000 Off During the Flipkart Buy Buy Sale
End…
