Andhra Pradesh to hold polls in December for 23 urban bodies left out earlier

Andhra Pradesh’s State Election Commission is preparing to hold elections in December for 23 urban local bodies where polls could not be held in the first round, Sakshi reported on 10 November, citing officials.

Voting in these bodies had been held up by court cases and other reasons. The cases have now been settled, the report said.

Which bodies

The 23 include four municipal corporations: Rajamahendravaram, Kakinada, Srikakulam and Mangalagiri-Tadepalli. The other 19 are municipalities and nagar panchayats. Together, the 23 bodies have about 24.93 lakh voters.

When

The notification is likely to be issued after 20 November, and voting could take place in the first or second week of December, officials told the paper. The Commission has not yet announced a schedule.

The background

Andhra Pradesh has been going through a long round of local body elections. Results for zilla and mandal parishad seats were declared in early November, and the ruling Telugu Desam Party-led alliance won most of them. Gram panchayat elections follow in three phases, on 26 November, 29 November and 2 December.

The dates in the report come from officials and have not yet been confirmed by the Commission.

What’s next

The State Election Commission is expected to issue the notification for the 23 urban bodies after 20 November.