Telangana to hold local body polls in five phases
HYDERABAD: The Telangana State Election Commission (SEC) on Monday announced the schedule for rural local body elections, which will be held in five phases from October 23 to November 8.
The first two phases will cover elections to Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTCs) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs). Polling will take place on October 23 and October 27, while counting is scheduled for November 11.
The next three phases will cover elections to gram panchayats, including sarpanch and ward member posts. Voting will be held on October 31, November 4 and November 8, with counting on the same day.
SEC commissioner Rani Kumudini said the notification will be issued on October 9, when nominations for the first phase begin. She added that the Model Code of Conduct comes into effect immediately.
Legal directives and government concurrence
The SEC finalised the schedule under Section 197(6) of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act, 2018, after concurrence from the state government. The government issued orders on September 26 notifying reservations for mandal, zilla parishads and gram panchayats.
A state-level meeting chaired by the election commissioner on September 27, attended by the chief secretary, director general of police and other senior officials, reviewed preparedness. The SEC also sought an extension from the High Court, which had earlier directed completion of the election process by September 30, 2025.
Exemptions and logistics
Polls in 14 MPTCs, 27 gram panchayats and 246 wards across Mulugu and Karimnagar districts have been withheld due to stay orders from the High Court.
Ballot boxes will be used for polling, borrowed from neighbouring states including Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.
Scale of elections
According to the SEC, polls will cover:
31 districts
565 mandals
5,749 MPTCs
565 ZPTCs
12,733 gram panchayats
1,12,288 wards
1,12,474 polling stations
The total rural voter strength stands at 1.67 crore, with 81.65 lakh men, 85.37 lakh women and 504 others.
The SEC appealed to voters, candidates and the media to cooperate for peaceful conduct of elections and ensure compliance with the Model Code of Conduct.
