Assembly bypoll: 45% turnout in Delhi; 80% in Andhra Pradesh

New Delhi, August 23

Polling for the Bawana assembly bypoll in Delhi ended peacefully on Wednesday with a total voter turnout of 45 per cent, much lower than in the 2015 elections in the constituency, where AAP, BJP and Congress are locked in a triangular contest.

“The entire polling process went on peacefully and no untoward incident was reported from any part of the constituency in north-west Delhi,” Chandra Bhushan Kumar, Chief Electoral Officer, Delhi said.

The polling officials said an EVM and 17 VVPAT machines malfunctioned and were replaced without any hindrance to voting.

“One EVM malfunctioned during the polling. 17 VVPATs also showed errors. All malfunctioning machines were replaced,” they said.

The voting percentage today was much lower than in the 2015 Assembly election in the constituency in which 61.83 per cent voting percentage was registered.

The officials conjectured that multiple elections taking place in the city in quick succession could be a factor for the low turnout in Bawana, adding that voter turnout was “generally low” in bypolls.

Eight candidates are in the fray for the bypoll. The counting of votes will take place on August 28.

BJP has fielded Ved Prakash who had won from the constituency in the 2015 elections as an AAP candidate. He had resigned from assembly membership and joined the BJP in March this year.

The AAP has fielded Ram Chandra, while Congress has put its bet on former three-time MLA from Bawana, Surendra Kumar.

Meanwhile, a high voter turnout of about 80 per cent was recorded in the by-election to Nandyal Assembly constituency in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh, where the ruling TDP and opposition YSR Congress (YSRC) are locked in a fierce battle.

Heavy turnout of voters was witnessed in Nandyal rural and Gospadu mandals in the segment with women outnumbering men, sources said.

In Nandyal town, about 70 per cent polling was reported.

Barring a face-off between supporters of the TDP and YSRC at a couple of places, the by-election passed off peacefully, a senior police official said.

The counting of votes will be taken up on August 28.

The Nandyal result will be widely seen as a trend setter for the general and assembly elections in the state in 2019 and may also alter the political equations.

For the first time, Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) was used in the by-election.

VVPAT is a machine which dispenses a slip with the symbol of the party for which a person has voted for. The slip drops in a box but the voter cannot take it home.

The by-election was held following the death of sitting MLA Bhuma Nagi Reddy in March. Reddy had won the seat in 2014 as YSR Congress candidate, but jumped over to the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in 2016.

Reddy’s nephew Brahmananda Reddy is now the TDP candidate, while the YSRC fielded former minister Silpa Chandra Mohan Reddy who switched sides to the opposition party just days ahead of the bypoll.

Though there are 15 candidates in the fray, the main fight is between the TDP and the YSRC. — PTI