Koraput: Jeypore MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati on Sunday alleged large-scale electoral malpractice during the just-concluded panchayat elections conducted by Andhra Pradesh in the disputed Kotia region, claiming that people from the neighbouring state were brought in to cast fake votes and that the two MPTC candidates were threatened at gunpoint to contest the polls. He demanded a probe by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged irregularities.Addressing the media in Jeypore, the Congress MLA alleged that the two candidates in the Ganjeipadar Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) were threatened with dire consequences if they refused to contest. He claimed that neither Cheeranjeevi Tadangi, who won the Ganjeipadar MPTC seat, nor his rival candidate, Mojoji Kanipuri, both from Kotia panchayat, cast their own votes.He further claimed that only 2-4% of eligible voters had actually participated in the polling, while votes were recorded in the names of people who had not turned up.Demanding the release of CCTV footage of the polling process, Bahinipati said he would take up the matter with the chief minister and urge him to recommend a CBI inquiry. He also sought stringent action against those involved, including the arrest of 12 alleged agents under the Odisha Security Act.He also urged the state govt to announce a special development package for Kotia and provide basic facilities, including a post office, to residents of border villages.The allegations come in the wake of Andhra Pradesh’s MPTC and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) elections held on Nov 5. Following objections from Odisha, Andhra Pradesh authorities shifted the polling booth from Neradivalasa to Sariki village on their side of the border.The two states differed sharply over voter turnout. Andhra Pradesh officials claimed that 1,150 of the 2,899 registered voters from Kotia had exercised their franchise, putting the turnout at around 40%. However, Koraput collector Manoj Satyawan Mahajan disputed the figure, maintaining that the polling booth catered to several villages on the Andhra side as well and that turnout among Kotia residents was around 10%.