Arrangements for Palair byepoll on May 16 are made in the segment in Khammam district. District Collector and Election Returning Officer Dana Kishore directed the officials concerned to ensure that the election process is taken up in a smooth manner.
Tents, water facility are a must at about 240 polling stations being set up for voting by the electors. Adequate number of polling staff has been pressed into service and they reached the polling stations and are busy getting ready for the polling process. The electors, who will exercise their franchise, will decide the fates of the candidates in fray till counting on May 19. The ruling party has fielded minister and local leader with strong fan following Tummala Nageshwar Rao. The Congress, which failed to convince the TRS for unanimous election playing sympathy card, had to field Sucharitha Reddy, wife of Ramreddy Venkat Reddy, whose death caused the by-election. The Congress also managed to get support from its arch rival Telugu Desam, which could not contest on its own as it lost its sheen with majority of the leaders joining the ruling party for greener pastures.
Congress leader Puvvada Ajay, son of CPI senior leader Puvvada Nageshwar Rao and Payam Venkateshwarlu, who joined the TRS, made Tummala’s winning chances brighter. They all participated in the whirlwind campaign of the ministers for Tummala candidature. The elections are expected to see more turnout of the voters of backward and drought-hit area as the people of the area are reportedly pinning hopes for growth if the TRS candidate is voted to power. (NSS)