Section 56 in The Telangana Panchayat Raj (Conduct of Elections) Rules, 2018
56. Counting of votes.
(1)The counting of votes shall commence on the day and at the place and hour appointed in that behalf. Votes shall be counted by or under the supervision of the Returning Officer.(2)The postal ballot papers shall be counted first.(3)Each candidate, the election agent and the counting agent of each candidate shall have a right to be present at the time of counting. No other person shall be allowed to be present except such person as the Returning Officer may appoint to assist him in counting votes and no person shall be appointed to assist in counting votes who has been employed by or on behalf of any candidate for any purpose whatsoever connected with the election.(4)The Returning Officer shall, before he commences to count the votes, read out the provisions of Section 217 of the Act to such person as may be present and shall then count and check all the ballot boxes placed for the counting of votes and satisfy himself that all such ballot boxes contain the ballot papers which are to be counted at such place have been received and accounted for.(5)The Returning Officer shall allow, the candidates and their election agents and counting agents present at the counting, reasonable opportunities to inspect the ballot boxes and their seals for satisfying themselves that they are in order.(6)If any ballot box is found by the Returning Officer to have been tampered or interfered with or destroyed or lost, or if at any time, before counting of votes is completed any ballot papers used at a polling station or at a place fixed for the poll are unlawfully taken out of the custody of the Returning Officer or are accidentally or intentionally, destroyed or lost or are damaged or tampered with to such an extent that the result of the poll at that polling station or place cannot be ascertained, the Returning Officer shall follow the procedure laid down in Section 231 of the Act.(7)(a)Subject to such general or special directions, if any, as may be given by the State Election Commission in this behalf the ballot papers shall be counted after mixing the votes ward-wise/ Gram Panchayat wise/ Territorial Constituency-wise, as the case may be.(b)The Returning Officer shall open, or cause to be opened, simultaneously the ballot box or boxes used at more than one polling station and shall have the total number of ballot papers found in such box or boxes counted and recorded in Part II of ballot paper account in Form - XXV.(c)Discrepancy, if any, between the total number of such ballot papers recorded as aforesaid and the total number of ballot papers issued to voters as shown in Item 3 of Part I of the said Form - XXV minus the number of ballot papers cancelled as shown in item 4 thereof and the number of papers as shown in item 5 thereof, shall also be recorded in Part II of Form - XXV.(8)The Returning Officer shall, as far as practicable, proceed continuously with the counting of the votes and shall, during any necessary intervals during which the counting has to be suspended, place the ballot papers, packets and other documents relating to the election under his own seal and the seals of such candidates or agents as may desire to affix them and shall cause adequate precautions to be taken for their custody.
