Telangana Chief Electoral Officer Vikas Raj announced that vote counting will begin at 8 am on Sunday. The counting will start with postal ballots and then move on to EVM votes. If the postal ballot counting takes longer than 8.30 am, the EVM counting will begin simultaneously.
Each counting center will have 14 tables, but more tables will be arranged if there are more voters in a particular constituency. Each table will have a counting supervisor, a micro observer, and two counting staff, along with representatives from the contesting candidates. The results will be declared after a thorough scrutiny and in the shortest possible time.
Vikas Raj mentioned that the polling on Thursday went smoothly with a few sporadic incidents. The voter turnout in the state was recorded at 70.79%, although the final scrutiny of votes is still ongoing. The details of each constituency’s voter turnout will be made public by Friday evening.
In response to complaints of rigging by some parties, Vikas Raj assured that web-casting footage is available at many polling stations. If anything suspicious is found, the observers and returning officers will take appropriate action.
Regarding the ruling party’s objection to exit polls being released while polling was still happening, Vikas Raj stated that the Election Commission considers all aspects and legal provisions before allowing such practices. He also mentioned that EC officials have removed 120 fake links, videos, and other materials from various social media platforms.
