Sporadic Incidents Mar Third Phase of Panchayat Polls in Adilabad
In Komaram Bheem Asifabad district, polling was conducted in four mandals, registering an 83.32 per cent turnout, with 1,00,081 votes polled out of 1,21,004 voters.
Adilabad: The third phase of the gram panchayat elections passed off largely peacefully, barring one or two sporadic incidents, in the erstwhile Adilabad district on Wednesday.
At Seethagondi polling booth in Gudihathnoor mandal, some villagers allegedly attacked Mavala sub-inspector Purushotham. Police said stones were pelted after they dispersed a crowd that had gathered within the prohibited 100-metre radius of the polling station. Tension escalated when one villager fell and sustained injuries during the dispersal, triggering anger among the crowd.
SI Purushotham, who was injured in the incident, was shifted to a hospital for treatment. Police vehicles were also damaged, with window panes reportedly broken. A case has been registered at Gudihathnoor police station and an inquiry is underway.
In another incident, a scuffle broke out between supporters of a Congress candidate and an Independent sarpanch candidate at Indaram gram panchayat in Jaipur mandal of Mancherial district. The Independent candidate alleged that the Congress candidate and his supporters were distributing money and campaigning near the polling booth to influence voters. Congress leaders denied the allegations.
Despite these incidents, polling remained brisk across districts. In Adilabad district, elections were held in six mandals, recording a polling percentage of 82.56, with 1,03,104 voters casting their ballots out of a total electorate of 1,24,880.
In Komaram Bheem Asifabad district, polling was conducted in four mandals, registering an 83.32 per cent turnout, with 1,00,081 votes polled out of 1,21,004 voters.
Mancherial district recorded the highest turnout, with elections held in five mandals and an 87.78 per cent polling percentage, as 93,822 voters cast their votes out of a total of 1,06,889.
In Nirmal district, polling was conducted in five mandals, recording an 84.99 per cent turnout, with 1,23,278 votes polled out of 1,45,048 voters.
Meanwhile, the elections witnessed a rare and emotional moment in Bharampur gram panchayat of Talamadugu mandal in Adilabad district, where Bholapathi Bhumanna, 80, cast his vote for the first time in gram panchayat elections. Elections were last held in Bharampur in 1956, after which sarpanches were elected unanimously for 69 years, leaving villagers without an opportunity to vote.
Bhumanna, who was 11 years old during the last contested election in his village, said casting his vote at the age of 80 was a memorable experience. “It is a great feeling to vote for the first time in gram panchayat elections,” he said.
