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Thursday, Mar 22, 2007
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Council poll: focus on lone loser

Andhra Pradesh Bureau

MLAs to elect 31 members today; parties conduct mock polling

HYDERABAD: With the number of candidates exceeding by only one, the 31 seats up for grabs from the MLAs' quota in the Council elections, the question being debated by political parties is who will be the lone loser.

The Congress has fielded 20 candidates, the TDP 5, the CPI and the TRS two each and the CPI (M) and the MIM one each. Nine TRS rebels have fielded an independent Kasani Gyaneshwar.

If all the 295 MLAs cast their vote, a candidate has to poll 9.22 votes to be declared elected. But, Gummadi Narsaiah of the CPI (ML-New Democracy) has decided to abstain from voting while the BSP has asked its lone member L. Raja Rao to stay away. Polling will be held in the Assembly between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Thursday and the counting from 5 p.m.

Congress poll managers claim that they enjoy the support of 212 MLAs, including those of its allies -- CPI, MIM, other smaller parties-- and independents. They contend that along with the preferential votes, this strength is sufficient to ensure the victory of 23 candidates of the alliance.

The TDP and its ally, the CPI (M), have a combined strength of 54, including that of suspended TDP MLA G. Veerasiva Reddy, against the six candidates they have fielded. But, the Congress hopes to secure his vote. This will leave the TDP combine with a significant shortfall for one of its candidates after ensuring the required votes for the remaining five.

With nine dissident MLAs backing Mr. Gyaneshwar, the TRS is banking on the BJP votes for its two candidates to sail through. Its expectation of a smooth sailing can be fulfilled only if BJP's P. Dora Babu retracts from his earlier stand in support of the independent candidate.

Meanwhile, in an exercise to ensure that their votes do not go astray in preferential voting as also guard against cross-voting, the Congress and the TDP conducted mock polls to explain the intricacies of the transferable preferential voting system.

TDP MLAs were made to participate in three rounds of mock polling while Congress MLAs did so at the Jubilee Hall in the presence of Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy. TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao went into a huddle with 17 MLAs who are loyal to the party to ensure the victory his two candidates.

The EC has deputed its Principal Secretary R. K. Srivastava and Secretary A. K. Majumdar as poll observers.

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