Hyderabad

Early trends from the Telangana municipal elections on Friday showed the Indian National Congress leading in 430 wards, while the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) was ahead in 222 wards as counting got underway across the state.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was placed third, leading in 61 wards, while other parties and independent candidates were ahead in 59 wards, according to initial trends.

Vote counting began earlier in the day for elections held on Wednesday across seven municipal corporations and 116 municipalities in Telangana. The exercise covers 414 wards in the municipal corporations of Kothagudem, Karimnagar, Mahabubnagar, Mancherial, Nizamabad, Nalgonda and Ramagundam, along with 2,582 wards in the 116 municipalities.

Authorities said elaborate arrangements were made by the police and the Election Commission of India to ensure smooth and orderly counting at designated centres across the state.

District Magistrate of Warangal, Satya Sharda, said the counting process commenced at 8 am, with postal ballots being taken up first.

“In Warangal district, counting of votes began at 8 am. At present, postal ballot counting is underway. Four counting tables have been arranged in Wardhannapet and ten tables in Narsampet. Results will be declared ward-wise as soon as counting is completed, strictly in accordance with Election Commission norms,” she told ANI.

Earlier, Telangana BJP president N Ramchander Rao expressed confidence that his party would significantly improve its performance in the municipal polls.

“Last time, we had around 330 municipal councillors and corporators and three chairpersons. This time, I am confident that the people of Telangana will give a big mandate to the BJP. We are hopeful of doing better and emerging as a strong alternative to the Congress,” Rao said.

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Counting is continuing across districts, with final results expected later in the day.