Congress Refutes BRS Vote Theft Claims Amid Jubilee Hills By-Election Clash

Congress leader Mohammed Azharuddin rebuffed BRS accusations of vote manipulation in the upcoming Jubilee Hills by-election. Allegations by BRS include large-scale voting irregularities. Azharuddin counters that Congress is exposing the actual vote theft, not participating in it. The election follows the death of the sitting MLA Gopinath, with Congress fielding V Naveen Yadav against BRS candidate Sunitha.

On Tuesday, Congress leader Mohammed Azharuddin dismissed accusations from the Bharath Rashtra Samithi (BRS) that the Congress party is involved in 'vote theft' ahead of the anticipated Jubilee Hills by-election slated for November 11.

Azharuddin underscored that Congress is not engaged in misconduct but is instead exposing the vote theft happening within the electoral process, accusing rival parties of such practices. Following a strategy meeting with the Congress booth committee, he emphasized the necessity of effective booth management for optimal voter turnout.

This election was prompted by the death of sitting MLA and BRS member Maganti Gopinath. Congress is placing its hopes on Backward Class (BC) leader V Naveen Yadav, while BRS has chosen Gopinath's widow, Sunitha, as their candidate. Meanwhile, the BJP has yet to announce its candidate.

In a counter move, BRS working president KT Rama Rao (KTR) and senior party leaders met with the Chief Electoral Officer of Telangana to report alleged voter list manipulations and duplicated entries in the Jubilee Hills constituency. KTR accused Congress of leveraging state resources and political influence to sway the election results in its favor.

He further alleged that Congress is utilizing coercive tactics, and diverting government resources, while simultaneously pointing out financial irregularities, as large funds are being allocated to Jubilee Hills on the eve of elections despite reports of state financial fragility.

KTR claimed to have identified approximately 20,000 fake votes, with potential duplications rife across 400 polling stations. These irregularities include cases of multiple registrations under a single name and households showing inflated numbers of registered voters. BRS asserts that these discrepancies are being orchestrated by Congress, allegedly with the assistance of lower-tier officials.

(With inputs from agencies.)