Hyderabad's Liquor Shops Closed for Municipal Elections; Parties Allocate Majority Tickets to BC Candidates

Hyderabad:All toddy and wine shops, bars attached to restaurants, and military canteens within the Muduchinthalapally municipality limits of the Malkajgiri Police Commissionerate will be closed in view of the municipal elections, stated a notification fromMalkajgiriCP Avinash Mohanty on Friday, February 6. The order was issued under Section 20 of the Telangana Excise Act, 1968, and will be in effect from 5:00 pm on February 9 till the completion of polling at 5:00 on February 11. The order will also be enforced on the counting day, that is, February 13, from 6:00 am till completion of the counting process and declaration of results. The State Election Commission has issued notifications for elections to 2,996 wards across 116 municipalities and seven municipal corporations. Fourteen wards were declared elected unopposed after the withdrawal deadline, leaving polling to be held in 2,982 wards. Additionally,Congress, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have allotted more than 50 per cent of their tickets to candidates from Backwards Communities (BCs), significantly exceeding the proportion of wards reserved for BCs under the existing quota framework. The ticket distribution follows the Congress government’s unsuccessful attempt to provide 42 per cent reservation to BCs in local body elections.