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Hyderabad: Voters in the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency will go to the polls today in a high-stakes byelection that has become a prestige battle for the Congress, which hopes to wrest the seat from the BRS, while the BJP seeks to make electoral inroads in the city. Polling will be held from 7 am to 6 pm, with 58 candidates in the fray, though the main contest is between the three principal parties. The bypoll was necessitated by the death of BRS MLA Maganti Gopinath.Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, buoyed by recent welfare initiatives and MIM support, has reportedly directed ministers and senior leaders to ensure maximum voter mobilisation until polling closes. The Congress campaign has leaned on its welfare record and promises of urban reform. The BRS, determined to retain the seat, has highlighted its past developmental work in the constituency and sought to capitalise on sympathy for Gopinath. Party leaders have also warned voters about the HYDRAA enforcement drive, claiming it has created apprehension among the public.The BJP, led by union minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar, has accused both the Congress and BRS of “appeasement politics” and alleged covert cooperation with the MIM. Sanjay courted controversy by declaring that if elected, he would rename Jubilee Hills as Sitaramnagar and Rahmathnagar as Meenakshipuram.Meanwhile, preparations for polling have been completed. The Hyderabad Election Authority on Monday dispatched EVMs to all 407 polling booths from the Kotla Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy Stadium, Yousufguda. “A total of 37 buses were used to transport the EVMs, accompanied by police escorts. All required stationery has also been sent to polling stations,” said an election official. The voting process will use 561 Control Units (CUs), 2,394 Ballot Units (BUs) and 595 Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines.District election officer R.V. Karnan supervised the arrangements and briefed polling personnel on Monday. Mock polling will be conducted before voting begins at 7 am. “Sector officers are in place, and additional EVMs are on standby. I urge citizens to come out in large numbers and vote,” Karnan said, after inspecting polling stations across the constituency.To assist voters, help desks have been set up at polling station locations, supported by NCC volunteers for queue management. Mobile deposit counters have also been arranged. Polling booths will be under three-tier security, and all shops in the constituency will remain closed to prevent gatherings or crowding.Voters must produce their Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) for verification before casting their votes. If unable to present an EPIC, they may use any of the 12 approved alternative photo identity documents to establish identity.Approved Photo Identity Documents:1. Aadhaar Card2. MNREGA Job Card3. Bank/Post Office Passbook with photograph4. Health Insurance Smart Card (ministry of labour)5. Ayushman Bharat Health Card6. Driving Licence7. PAN Card8. Smart Card issued under NPR9. Indian Passport10. Pension document with photograph11. Service ID Card with photograph (Central/State Govt, PSU or public limited company)12. Identity Card issued to MPs/MLAs/MLCs or Unique Disability ID (ministry of social justice and empowerment)
