Deekshitula Subrahmanyam Rampachodavaram

TheState Election Commission has issued notifications for conducting indirect elections to the posts of co-opted members, presidents and vice-presidents of 12 Mandal Praja Parishads and the chairperson and vice-chairperson of the Polavaram Zilla Praja Parishad, District Collector K Dinesh Kumar said on Tuesday.

The elections to co-opted members, MPP presidents and vice-presidents will be held on November 19. Similarly, elections to two co-opted members and the ZP chairperson and vice-chairperson will be conducted on November 20. Presiding officers concerned will convene special meetings on the respective dates to conduct the elections, the Collector said. The elected MPTC members will elect one among themselves as MPP president and another as vice-president. Likewise, elected ZPTC members will choose the ZP chairperson and vice-chairperson from among themselves.

Each Mandal Praja Parishad will elect one co-opted member, while the Zilla Praja Parishad will have two co-opted members. Eligible candidates for these positions should belong to religious or linguistic minority communities. The election of co-opted members will be conducted before the elections to the MPP president and vice-president and the ZP chairperson and vice-chairperson posts. The elections to the MPP and ZP leadership posts will be conducted through the Show of Hands method. Members will be required to follow the party whips issued by their respective recognised political parties. However, party whips will not apply to elections of co-opted members, the Collector clarified.

MPs, MLCs and MLAs who are ex-officio members of the respective Mandal and Zilla Praja Parishads will be invited to attend the special meetings.

However, they will not have voting rights in these indirect elections.