In the first hearing held in the case related to the elections of AP Mahesh Urban Cooperative Bank, the Telangana High Court has directed the Returning Officer to resume the counting of votes but barred him from announcing the results.
The RO, who faces disciplinary action for abruptly stopping the counting, has to submit the results after counting is over, in a sealed envelope to the court on Monday.
The case came up for hearing on Thursday. While hearing the petition of the Returning officer and the outgoing senior Vice-Chairman Ramesh Kumar Bung, the court ordered counting of votes of the last four booths and submitting the result in a seal packed envelope.
The next hearing in the matter will be held on 28th December 2020. Indian Cooperative’s efforts to contact the RO Esther Rani John for her comment on the development have been but to no avail.
Meanwhile, the opposition panel led by Bhagwati Baldewa has also filed a petition in the court against Ramesh Bung who leads the Sansthapak Panel.
The opposition panel’s argument is that there was less deployment of EVMs in the election and the Ramesh Bung team made 800 gold loan members in a single day so as to increase the number of voters supporting his panel.
Besides, the opposition panel is demanding an appointment of an Administrator.
It bears recall that earlier on the day of counting of votes, Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission ordered a stoppage of the counting of votes for the last four booths. A total 61 EVMs were deployed in different polling booths. It was the first time that the election of the bank was held through the EVMs. Earlier it used to be held through ballot paper.
The two panels–Sansthapak Panel and the Founder Panel headed by Ramesh Bung and Bhagwati Baldewa respectively, were locked into a nasty fight in the run up to the elections. Each side had fielded 15-15 candidates each.
It is said the results till the last counting of votes were in the favour of the Sansthapak Panel led by Ramesh Bung but at the last minute the leaders of the opposition panel created ruckus at the counting center.
