NDA stuns YSRCP, wins GVMC standing committee elections by a huge majority

NDA sweeps GVMC Council elections, YSRCP alleges irregularities; tension prevails as YSRCP corporators protest, demand recounting of votes.

In a major shock to the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), comprising the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Jana Sena Party (JSP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), made a clean sweep in the standing committee elections of the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) Council with a huge majority, here on Wednesday.

All 10 corporators from the TDP who have contested the ten posts of the standing committee have won with a large majority. However, YSRCP corporators alleged that the NDA leaders, with the support of GVMC officials who have organised the elections, committed irregularities to ensure that the TDP corporators win the elections.

The elections began at 10 a.m. at the Old Council office. Of the 97 eligible corporators, as many as 96 corporators cast their vote, while CPI(M) corporator from Ward 78 abstained from voting. Officials said the TDP corporators received around 54 to 66 votes, while the halfway mark is 49. Among the 10 corporators, seven corporators won more than 60 votes.

Tension prevailed as corporators from the YSRCP including those who had contested in the elections had staged a protest before the GVMC office. The corporators alleged that some of the votes should be been declared invalid.

Floor leader of the YSRCP in the GVMC, Banala Srinivasa Rao, alleged that around 14 votes/voting slips were found to be having ink mark probably marked with a pencil. As per the rules, pens, pencils, smart watches, mobile phones and any electronic gadgets were not allowed. But how come the slips contain marks, he said.

The YSRCP corporators alleged that the NDA leaders have threatened and used various methods to buy votes of the YSRCP corporators. To make sure they voted for the NDA, they might have asked them to mark the votes with some marker.

Ward 51 corporator P. Venkata Ramana of the YSRCP said, “How can the GVMC officials allow such banned material in the voting centre? There should be an enquiry into the incident.”