The Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission on Tuesday rescheduled polling for Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTCs) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs) from November 3 to November 5, with counting now set for November 7 (and a re-poll, if needed, on November 6).
The change, formalised in Notification No. 905/SEC-B1/2026 dated 28 October 2026, stems from the revised urban local body (ULB) calendar in which counting falls on November 3—the original rural polling date—creating an unmanageable overlap for police and election staff.
Lists of contesting candidates were published after 3 p.m. on 27 October following the withdrawal deadline. Uncontested seats where only one valid nomination remained have already been declared under Rule 16(2) of the A.P. Panchayat Raj (Conduct of Elections) Rules, 2006. The rescheduling follows the Supreme Court’s directions that led the Commission to shift ULB polling to 1 November (re-poll on 2 November) and counting to 3 November after extending nomination windows in four urban bodies.
Kotia Flashpoint
The shift directly affects the disputed Kotia group of villages along the Andhra Pradesh–Odisha border in Parvathipuram Manyam district (claimed by Odisha as part of Koraput). Andhra Pradesh has notified MPTC and related rural polls in villages including Phagunasineri, Ganjeipadar and Phatusineri—roughly 21 of the 28 villages under the Kotia Gram Panchayat. Odisha maintains that all 28 villages lie within its territory and has filed a contempt petition in the Supreme Court, arguing the move violates the 2006 status-quo order arising from a 1968 suit.
Around 2,700 voters appear on Andhra rolls for the relevant MPTC seats in the cluster; many residents hold dual voter IDs, ration cards and Aadhaar cards from both states. Political parties in Odisha, including the BJD, have staged protests, while the state government has directed local officials to monitor developments closely. The original November 3 date had already heightened tensions; the two-day postponement gives both sides a brief additional window but does not resolve the underlying jurisdictional conflict.
Broader Context and Logistics
The overall rural exercise covers thousands of MPTC and ZPTC seats across Andhra Pradesh (with some seats excluded for administrative or legal reasons). The Commission cited efficient use of limited security and polling personnel—exacerbated by the concurrent ULB counting—as the primary driver. Earlier notifications had set rural polling for 3 November and counting for 5 November; urban bodies had originally been slated for 28 October before the Supreme Court-mandated revision.
With candidate lists now public and uncontested results already declared in many places, attention turns to campaigning in the remaining contested seats and the high-stakes logistics of simultaneous (though staggered) urban and rural processes. In Kotia, the date change is unlikely to quiet the diplomatic and legal noise between the neighbouring states.
