Congress, MIM, TDP win seat each in legislative council

Tuesday, May 11, 2010 | AA
Hyderabad, May 10 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh's ruling Congress, its ally Majlis
-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) and the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP)
Monday won a seat each in the 90-member legislative council.

Congress and MIM candidates were elected in the state capital while TDP bagged
the lone seat in neighbouring Ranga Reddy district. The result of the council
polls for three seats were announced within couple of hours after the counting
began Monday morning.

The elections to three seats from Local Authorities Constituencies (LACs) were
held on Friday.

Congress' M.S. Prabhakar and MIM's Syed Aminul Hasan Jafri were elected in
Hyderabad while Narendra Reddy of the TDP emerged victorious in Ranga Reddy
district.

The result in Hyderabad was a foregone conclusion given the majority Congress
and MIM enjoyed in the local body and the poll boycott by the TDP.

However, the result in Ranga Reddy came as a jolt to the Congress party as it had
gone all out to woo voters, comprising members of zilla parishad and mandal
parishad territorial committee members, corporators and councillors.

TDP's Narendra Reddy was elected with a margin of 48 votes. TDP bagged 342
votes while Congress polled 294 votes. Eight votes were declared invalid. Out of
653 voters in Ranga Reddy, 644 had cast their votes.

In Hyderabad, Congress polled 69 seats and MIM 55. Two votes were declared
invalid. Out of the total 157 voters, 126 had exercised their franchise.

In a last minute-decision, the TDP had boycotted the polls in Hyderabad making
it almost an unopposed election of the Congress
and MIM candidates.

The TDP's was voicing its protest against election officials not allowing
its corporator Raja Singh to cast his vote through postal ballot.

Raja Singh, an accused in the recent communal riots in the city, is lodged
in Chanchalguda jail.

Soon after his victory, MIM candidate and senior journalist Jafri told
reporters that he would do his best to solve the problems faced by the people
of Hyderabad and its twin city Secunderabad.