Telangana Teachers Association TSTCEA Demands Holidays on Polling Days - December 11, 14 and 17

The Telangana State Teachers and Colleges Employees Association (TSTCEA) has appealed to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Telangana to announce public holidays in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts on the gram panchayat election dates — December 11, 14, and 17.

In its representation, TSTCEA president Aineni Santosh Kumar raised concerns over a significant scheduling conflict: several major universities, including Osmania University and JNTU Hyderabad, along with multiple autonomous colleges, have planned examinations on the very same days as polling.

According to the association, this overlap could prevent thousands of students and teaching/non-teaching staff from turning up to vote. A large share of students studying in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy hail from rural parts of Telangana and remain registered voters in their native villages. Likewise, many employees working in the city routinely travel back to their hometowns during elections to cast their vote.

TSTCEA argued that conducting examinations on polling days would effectively deprive these groups of their constitutional right to participate in the electoral process. “If exams go ahead on these dates, how can students and employees manage both voting and writing their papers? The situation clearly warrants urgent reconsideration,” Santosh Kumar said.

The association reminded the Election Commission that its primary mandate is to ensure maximum voter turnout, and policies that unintentionally suppress participation must be revisited.

TSTCEA has requested universities to reschedule the examinations slated for December 11, 14, and 17. It also urged the state government to declare public holidays in Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy to support voter movement and participation, pointing out that these districts host a high concentration of higher education institutions, attracting thousands of rural youth.