Teachers’ MLC: No candidate gets required votes in first preference

Hyderabad: In a surprise development, BJP candidate A.V.N. Reddy decisively strode ahead in the Mahbubnagar-Ranga Reddy-Hyderabad teachers constituency election of the Legislative Council, though no candidate won a sufficient number of first preference votes to be declared elected.

Officials began counting second preferential votes and the result of the March 13 election could be declared on Friday.

BJP candidate Reddy won 7, 505 first preference, 921 votes ahead of the much fancied BRS-backed PRTU candidate Chenna Keshava Reddy. The Congress-backed candidate was languishing in the fourth round and knocked out of the second round.

To win, a candidate has to secure more than 50 per cent of first preference votes. No candidate could achieve this, triggering the count of second preference votes. The second is limited to the top two candidates

Held under tight police security, the counting of votes continued at the Saroornagar stadium late into Thursday night.

Returning officer Priyanka Ala said that the result could be declared by Friday morning.  She said 452 votes were found invalid.

Ala said that candidates who got fewer votes were eliminated from the second preferential votes’ counting. She said that the winning candidate should get the magical figure of 12,709 votes.