Hyderabad: In a setback to major political parties ahead of the indirect elections to municipal chairpersons and mayors, the Telangana State Election Commission (SEC) has tightened norms on ex-officio members, potentially altering the numbers game in several municipalities that have seen fractured verdicts in the recently-held polls.
Of the 116 municipalities and seven municipal corporations, 37 have thrown up hung councils where no party has a clear majority, making every vote crucial.
In a late-night circular on Friday, the SEC clarified that only those ex-officio members, including Lok Sabha MPs and MLAs, who represent constituencies wholly or partly within a municipal area can be co-opted to participate in voting. Rajya Sabha members and members of legislative council (MLCs) can register and vote as ex-officio members only if they are registered voters within the respective municipal limits, it said.
The clarification is a blow particularly to the BRS, which had planned to deploy its MLCs and Rajya Sabha MPs across municipalities to shore up numbers and secure chairpersons' and deputy chairpersons' posts. The order also impacts the BJP and, to an extent, the ruling Congress in municipalities that delivered fractured verdicts.
The indirect elections will be held on Feb 16 under the supervision of district collectors or authorised officers.
"If a person was nominated as a member or cast his/her vote as an ex-officio member, if they are not voters in the municipal limits, the same would be null and void," Telangana SEC secretary Lingya Naik clarified.
Explaining the decision, the SEC said the instructions were issued for proper implementation of section 5(3)(c) and (d) of the Telangana Municipalities Act, 2019, read with Article 243-R of the Constitution, in line with a Telangana high court judgment in 2022.
In Kagaznagar municipality, the BRS, which won 11 wards against Congress' nine, BJP's five and four independents, was banking on support from MLC Dasoju Sravan as an ex-officio member to bridge a five-vote gap. However, Sravan will not qualify as he is a registered voter in Greater Hyderabad.
Similarly, the SEC rejected the nomination of BRS MLC Pochampally Srinivas Reddy as an ex-officio member in Jangaon. The BRS secured 13 wards against Congress' 12 in Jangaon, with four independents holding the key.
BRS's gambit
The BRS, which has around 17 MLCs and four Rajya Sabha MPs, had reportedly planned to nominate several of them as ex-officio members in different municipalities to influence the outcome.
With the possibility of defections looming, parties are preparing to issue whips directing elected members to vote for official or supported candidates in the chairpersons' and vice-chairpersons' polls.
In fact, in the changed scenario, the BRS cannot deploy many of its MLAs and Lok Sabha MPs as ex-officio members in several municipalities. Of the 39 assembly seats it won in the 2023 elections, the party's strength has dropped to 27 MLAs following defections and two bypoll losses.
A majority of these seats are within the limits of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation and Cyberabad Municipal Corporation, where elections were not held.
In a few municipalities, including Sircilla — the constituency of BRS working president KT Rama Rao — the party secured an absolute majority. The pink party did not win a single Lok Sabha seat in 2024 and has no MPs.
Party sources said the 2022 high court verdict on the voting rights of ex-officio members has now altered the fortunes of parties in the elections to municipal chairpersons and mayors. The BRS, which is currently facing the impact of the ruling, did not challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court when it was in power. Party sources said that had it done so, the present setback could have been avoided.
BJP is also facing a similar dilemma. Party MLCs Anji Reddy and Malka Komaraiah, though hailing from Karimnagar, cannot exercise their votes as ex-officio members since they are registered voters within GHMC limits. The party requires five more votes to secure control of the Karimnagar Municipal Corporation and is banking on support from independents.
But with Karimnagar MP (Union minister Bandi Sanjay), eligible under the rules, the BJP could gain a numerical advantage if it gets the support of a few independents, a political analyst said.
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