Tension prevailed at the Sadum mandal of Punganur Assembly constituency in Chittoor district, after the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders complained to police and election officials, alleging that about 15 of their activists, including five polling agents, were abducted by the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) cadres on Monday morning.
According to information, five polling agents of the TDP, along with ten other party cadres, were proceeding to the polling booth at Booragamanda village in the mandal, when the YSRCP cadres reportedly accosted them and whisked them away in their private vehicles towards Piler in the Annamayya district.
The TDP cadres alleged that the abducted partymen were abandoned at the outskirts of Piler, 25 km away from Sadum, with a warning that they should stay away from the polling station till afternoon.
Reacting to the TDP’s complaint on the Sadum issue, the Election Commission authorities directed the Chittoor SP to resolve the stalemate. Close to noon, a special party rushed to the inter-district border and secured the TDP cadres, bringing the poll agents to their respective booths. The TDP leaders of Annamayya and Chittoor districts further complained to the Election Commission to take action on the police of Sadum mandal for working in favour of the YSRCP leaders.
Except for this incident, polling went on peacefully in all other booths in the Punganur Assembly constituency, which was largely considered as a highly sensitive area. Similarly, the Kuppam Assembly constituency, the bastion of TDP national president N. Chandrababu Naidu witnessed peaceful polling without a single incident of trouble.
As a precautionary measure, as many as 3,000 police personnel were drafted for bandobast duties in the Chittoor district, in addition to the additional forces deployed in Kuppam and Punganur, given their previous history of violence during Naidu’s visit last year. Further, 100% webcasting is in place at these two Assembly constituencies.
Mild tension prevailed at Karveti Nagaram of GD Nellore Assembly constituency (SC) in Chittoor district, when a batch of TDP cadres prevented YSRCP MLA candidate, Kalattur Krupa Lakshmi, from entering a polling booth. Following heated arguments between the two sides, Ms. Krupa Lakshmi reportedly showed her chappal to the TDP cadres, which led to further trouble. The police acted swiftly and pacified both sides.
Meanwhile, Minister for Forests, P. Ramachandra Reddy, had cast his vote at Yerravathivaripalle, his native place in Punganur Assembly constituency. The TDP cadres alleged that after casting his vote, the Minister displayed the party symbol, which amounted to a violation of the Election Commission guidelines.
In Chittoor, the polling pattern was largely peaceful. At Mittur locality in Chittoor Municipal Corporation limits, mild tension prevailed when former MLA C.K. Babu, TDP’s general agent, and the YSRCP candidate M.C. Vijayananda Reddy reached the polling booth simultaneously. When the supporters of both sides entered into arguments, Joint Collector and Returning Officer P. Srinivasulu rushed to the spot and pacified the two sides.
At Mandi Krishnapuram village of Gudipala mandal of Chittoor Assembly constituency, a clash ensued between the YSRCP and the TDP cadres, in front of the polling booth. A YSRCP activist, Suresh Reddy, and TDP’s polling agent Chandra took to fisticuffs in front of the police, when the former stabbed the other with a knife, leading to a bleeding injury. The police registered a case.
In the Kuppam Assembly constituency, a first-time voter, Gayatri (19), broke down outside the booth and stated that her vote had already been cast through impersonation. She complained to the election officials.
In the Rayachoti and Rajampeta Assembly constituencies, additional forces were deployed to prevent any untoward turn of events. In Anantapur and Sri Sathya Sai districts, polling was reportedly delayed in several centers, after the electronic voting machines (EVM) suffered a technical snag. However, their operation turned normal after 10.00 a.m. onwards.
