Hyderabad: The ruling TRS party in Telangana is confident of winning the Warangal Lok Sabha seat for which polling was held on Saturday, and counting to start from 8 AM, on Monday. The party’s confidence comes from the assessment reports of voting pattern that it has got from the seven assembly constituencies falling under the LS constituency.
Initially the party was worried about the Warangal west and east constituencies as the maximum urban voter strengthen here could tilt the fortunes of the part in either way. So, it had deputed all its frontline-men to woo the voters in these two constituencies to vote for the party. Right from the start of the day of polling the party’s poll managers has been asked the voting pattern from 905 polling station locations in which the Election Commission has set up 1,778 polling stations. “In the first four hours of the polling the voting per centage was hovering around only 13 to 14 per cent. So, we had decided to wait and watch as it had presenting a mixed pattern of voting, both in terms of men and women voters.”
But, by 3 pm in the afternoon the party’s confidence has gone up that it was sure of winning the contest. Because, there was no surge in the voting per centages and it was only around 57 to 58 per cent around that time. So, the overall polling per centage may not go beyond 70 per cent. If touches that mark or goes beyond then it could be considered as an anti-incumbency trend was in the making, he pointed out.
In particular, the party leadership had closely monitored the voting pattern of both the Warangal east and west assembly constituencies, as it is still worried and not confident of having won the confidence of the urban voters. But, by 3 pm there was only 37 to 39 per cent turnout in Warangal west assembly segment, the lowest polling recorded among the seven assembly segment. This has lifted up the confidence of the party that it was sure that fortunes were to tilt the win in its favour. Also, the main factor contributed to this feeling further was, that the employees, teachers and other working strata has reportedly rallied behind the TRS. For, they feel there is no point at this point of time to vote against the ruling party candidate said a TRS leader from Warangal.
Certainly there were cracks developed in the faith reposed in the TRS by the voters. In particular, those from the urban segments were expressing resentment over a couple of issues on which the TRS government that they feel had taken unilateral decisions. Also, the younger generation from the cities like Hyderabad and Warangal, who were in the frontlines for the struggle to achieve separate state were not very happy with the new government.
But, all this could not culminate into an anti incumbency voting, because, it seems people still wanted to give some more time for the ruling party to get its act together and to deliver on its electoral promises. This trend is seen particularly, in rural segments where the polling per centage has gone up beyond 69 per centage. However, it was not all that positive, and there were anxious moments too for the party when the polling per centage in Warangal east assembly has been going up and up from 2 pm. And, at the end it has ended with only 62.2 per cent and with only 48 per cent of polling recorded in Warangal west giving a sigh of relief to the ruling party.
Now, the party considers that it was sure to win the Warangal LS seat. But, it may not get a majority more than a little over one lakh majority in the by-poll. Counting of the votes will start at Agriculture Market Committee premises at Enumamula of Warangal in seven counting halls from 7 am on Monday, and the results are expected to be out by 8 pm on the same day.
