Residents of disputed villages in Kotia cross Odisha border to vote in Andhra Pradesh polls

Several voters from Kotia gram panchayat, whose jurisdiction has long been disputed between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, crossed the Odisha border on Thursday to cast their votes in the mandal parishad territorial constituency and zilla parishad territorial constituency elections conducted by the Andhra Pradesh State Election Commission.The Odisha government had deployed 16 platoons of police and erected three border checkpoints, restricting people’s entry and exit. However, several voters sneaked out from the borders to cast votes.The Andhra Pradesh government had set up a polling booth for villagers of Kotia at Sariki in its State boundary.Political parties in Odisha accused leaders from Andhra Pradesh of bribing people to get their votes. “Some were taken to the other side of the boundary on Wednesday. After casting their votes, they returned,” said veteran Congress MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati, who hails from Koraput district.Similarly, Bhrugu Buxipatra, a senior BJD leader, said a few had crossed borders to vote. However, this time, the people of Odisha were successful by not letting Andhra Pradesh set up its polling booth inside Odisha, he said.Koraput Sub-Collector Fabi Rasheed said security personnel and Executive Magistrates were deployed in bordering villages to prevent untoward incidents. “Villagers did cross the border, but we have no idea if they voted in the Andhra Pradesh elections,” Ms. Rasheed said.In the run-up to elections, political parties from Odisha had camped at borders by not allowing polling booths inside the State.Both Odisha and Andhra Pradesh have been claiming their jurisdictional rights since 1950s. The dispute surfaced in 1955, two years after the formation of Andhra Province, when Andhra Pradesh officials attempted to collect land revenue from the villages. In 1954 and 1967 elections, some villagers of Kotia had participated in elections for both the States. Odisha government had moved Supreme Court over Kotia dispute in 1968.Koraput District Collector had filed contempt petition in the Supreme Court in October this year, alleging Andhra Pradesh violated the 2006 status quo order.On March 30, 2006, the Supreme Court disposed of the original suit (1968), holding that it lacked jurisdiction to adjudicate the dispute because of the proviso to Article 131. It directed that the status quo should be maintained until the dispute was taken up by an appropriate authority in accordance with law. According to legal experts, issues under Article 131 of the Constitution are resolved only by Parliament.Residents of Kotia Group of Villages avail welfare benefits from both the State. Some possess voter identity card of both States and cast their votes depending on poll schedule. Published - November 06, 2026 01:24 am IST