The steep decline in polling percentage in all the civic bodies around GHMC has baffled the political class. While the polling percentage in other municipalities and corporations in the districts was perfect, the response has been lukewarm at places like Nizampet, Jawahar Nagar, Badangpet, Manikonda, Jalapalli, Bandlaguda Jagir.
The polling percentage in the newly-carved Nizampet municipality is only 39 percent. The area inhabited by employees of the Telangana Secretariat and other government departments. A large number of voters are also migrants from the coastal Andhra region.
The region was far behind the TRS in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. But, there was no voter enthusiasm around this time. Out of a total of 1.09 lakh voters, only 43000 voters had voted, while over 60000 abstained from elections.
Sources say that the government declares the election day as a holiday, those who went to their ancestral villages had returned and would come only on Monday. This may be one of the main reasons for the low turnout.
Similarly, other municipalities around GHMC have also had lower voting percentages. Political parties are now worried about which party will be affected by the low turnout.