As the 119-seat Telangana Assembly goes to polls on 30 November, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) and his party Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) are facing a strong challenge from a 'resurgent' Congress.
Welfare schemes are going to be key this election, as KCR's flagship schemes like Rythu Bandhu (investment support for farmers), Dalit Bandhu (financial support for Dalit families), Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak (marriage support), and Aasara pensions have become avenues for both anti- and pro-incumbency.
The Congress, buoyed by its success in Karnataka, is trying to pitch for maarpu (change) in Telangana. In the run-up to the polls, several BRS leaders had switched sides to the Congress, helping it in the perception battle.
Though the BRS appears uneasy, it has gone all out in seeking votes for not just itself but also "for Telangana," gently reminding the people of the state that the "Bharat" in its name is purely secondary at the moment.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is in the scene but barely so in a few constituencies, irrespective of its show of strength in the 2020 Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation polls. The party is yet again relying on the personal appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has visited the state multiple times over the last few weeks. The party has also been pushing a hardline agenda, with promises such as renaming Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar.
The BJP is contesting 111 seats and is in alliance with actor Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena Party in eight seats.
Asaduddin Owaisi's All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is contesting from nine constituencies this time – two more than its sitting seats in the Old City of Hyderabad. While it is eyeing only these key seats, AIMIM's strong presence in parts of Telangana, especially in the north, is significant for the BRS, the party's unofficial poll ally.
To get a better picture of the Telangana Assembly polls, let's take a closer look at the key constituencies and the leaders contesting there.
Gajwel: KCR Vs Eatala
This constituency located in Siddipet district is KCR's home turf, where he has won from in both 2014 and 2018 with massive victory margins of nearly 20,000 and 50,000 votes, respectively. But this time, the leader, who has never lost an election since 1985, is facing his friend-turned-foe Eatala Rajender in Gajwel.
Rajender, who was a minister in KCR's Cabinet, was ousted after he was found involved in a land-grabbing controversy in 2021. Once a Communist leader, Rajender switched to the BJP after his tussle with KCR and was re-elected as MLA in the Huzurabad byelection.
For the BJP, Rajender is a key figure because he was an active leader in the statehood movement and is learnt to still hold some influence in the BRS.
Rajender is also contesting from a second seat, his stronghold Huzurabad.
The threat of Rajender aside, KCR is also facing some level of anti-incumbency in Gajwel, even though the seat has seen considerable infrastructural development. Read more on The Quint's ground report from Gajwel.
The third contender here is the Congress, who has fielded former MLA T Narsa Reddy. Gajwel is also one of the constituencies where a huge number of Independent candidates are in the fray.
Kamareddy: KCR Vs Revanth
In addition to Gajwel, KCR is also contesting from Kamareddy, a constituency that falls under the district by the same. Kamareddy, the district, was carved from Nizamabad in the north of Telangana.
Speaking to The Quint earlier, IT Minister and son of KCR, KT Rama Rao, said the reason for his father choosing Kamareddy is that "there were some areas there that needed support. If KCR garu contests from there, it will boost these areas."
It is important to note that KCR's daughter K Kavitha, who was an MP in Nizamabad, lost her seat to Dharmapuri Arvind in 2019 (who is now contesting as an MLA from Korutla). Nizamabad neighbours Kamareddy and was the hub of the turmeric farmers' protest.
Some also speculate that Kamareddy's proximity to Maharashtra may open up possibilities for KCR's national plans.
Either way, the fight may still be a hard one as he is taking on the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief A Revanth Reddy here. Revanth is also contesting from Kodangal, where he had won as the MLA in 2014 and 2009 on Telugu Desam Party (TDP) tickets.
The BJP's Venkataramana Reddy has also emerged as a strong contender in Kamareddy.
Read The Quint's ground report here.
Sircilla & Siddipet: BRS Bastions
The textile hub of Telangana, Sircilla has been a KT Rama Rao (KTR) stronghold since 2009. He won the 2009 united Andhra Pradesh elections by a wafer-thin margin of 171 votes, but cut to 2018, his victory margin was over 1 lakh votes.
The Telangana government's efforts in reviving the handloom sector in the constituency through the Bathukamma saree distribution (wherein women are given sarees during the Bathukamma festival) has won him support from weavers over the years.
This time, KTR is facing Congress' KK Mahender Reddy and BJP' Rani Rudrama Reddy. You can read The Quint's interview with KTR here.
The Sircilla segment falls under the Rajanna-Sircilla district, which neighbours Siddipet, where CM KCR's nephew T Harish Rao is contesting. Harish Rao, who holds three of the most important portfolios of health, irrigation, and finance in the government, is seen as KCR's right-hand man and key poll strategist.
Harish Rao is said to be comfortably placed owing to the lack of a strong opposition. He won the 2014 and 2018 elections by margins of around 1 lakh. In 2018, for instance, the runner-up from Telangana Jana Samithi secured just 12,596 votes.
Kodangal: Will Revanth Rise Again?
TPCC president A Revanth Reddy has a massive battle ahead of him. After taking over as the Congress president in Telangana in 2021, Revanth faced stiff opposition from senior Congress leaders, and the hurdle was not just to persuade them but also bring Congress – which had faced successive defeats by then – back to its 'former glory' in the state.
Revanth became a two-time MLA in the Kodangal Assembly constituency in 2009 and 2014 as a TDP candidate. He was also known to work for the ABVP and BJP in his early political career. In 2018, he lost to BRS' Patnam Mahender Reddy, who is the party's candidate this time as well. After his loss, which coincided with the party's near obliteration in 2018, Revanth contested the Lok Sabha elections in Malkajgiri and won.
Kodangal is a tricky seat for Revanth, just as his second seat Kamareddy is. This not only has to do with BRS' strong presence in the constituency but also some infighting within the Congress. Leaders like the Komatireddy brothers (Venkat Reddy and Raj Gopal Reddy) and Uttam Kumar Reddy are said to be displeased with Revanth's leadership and his potential to be the next CM, prompting them to maintain distance from his campaigns.
Goshamahal: BJP's Lone Win in 2018
In the 2018 Assembly elections, the BJP won just a single seat – Goshamahal. Repeat hate speech offender T Raja Singh has had tight grip over the Goshamahal Assembly constituency for two terms after he won it from three-time MLA Mukesh Goud in 2014.
Goshamahal, which was called the Maharajgunj Assembly constituency in united Andhra Pradesh, has a Hindu majority though it falls under the Hyderabad Parliamentary constituency – an AIMIM and Asaduddin Owaisi bastion.
Lodh Rajputs, the community that Singh belongs to, is dominant here – and so is Hindutva. Development, on the other hand, has taken a backseat here. Watch The Quint's ground report from Goshamahal here.
Raja Singh is contesting against BRS' Nand Kishore Vyas (Nandu Bilal), who hails from the Marwari community and has considerable support among Muslims – a minority in this segment. The Congress' candidate here is Sunitha Rao.
Nampally: AIMIM Vs Congress
Former poll allies AIMIM and Congress are battling it out in the Nampally constituency, which is an AIMIM stronghold in Hyderabad's Old City. But this time, the AIMIM has replaced sitting MLA Jaffar Hussain Meraj, moved him to Yakutpura, and fielded Mohammed Majid Hussain, a close confidante of Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, in Nampally.
Majid Hussain was a GHMC corporator and later the Mayor – and is largely credited for the AIMIM's performance in Bihar in the 2020 elections.
He, however, is facing competition from Congress' Feroz Khan, a staunch AIMIM critic. Khan had contested against the AIMIM three consecutive times in Nampally – and had emerged as the runner-up. He had also contested against Asaduddin Owaisi during the Lok Sabha polls.
Jubilee Hills: Three-Way Fight?
In Jubilee Hills, which falls under the Secunderabad Parliamentary constituency, the Congress has fielded former cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin, the BRS has chosen sitting MLA Maganti Gopinath, and the AIMIM (which had contested this seat unsuccessfully in 2014) has fielded Mohammed Rashed Farazuddin.
While the Congress has accused the AIMIM of protecting its "poll ally" BRS by fielding a candidate against Azharuddin, Asaduddin Owaisi said in an interaction with The Quint:
"I have two corporators in Jubilee Hills. In 2014, we had contested there, but not in 2018. Why did Rahul Gandhi contest from Wayanad? He could have just contested from Amethi. These are decisions which are made by a political party. The Congress party cannot make a decision for my party. We will make a decision that is good for our party, strengthen our party, and is based on the feedback from that particular Assembly constituency."
BRS' Maganti Gopinath had won from Jubilee Hills twice, in 2014 and 2018, with considerable victory margin. On the other hand, Azharuddin, who hails from Hyderabad, had won the 2009 Lok Sabha polls from Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad, and lost in 2014 while contesting the Tonk–Sawai Madhopur seat in Rajasthan.
He has been active in Telangana politics since 2017, and was appointed as the working president of the TPCC in 2018.
Chandrayangutta: Akbaruddin Owaisi's Bastion
Akbaruddin Owaisi, the younger brother of Asaduddin Owaisi, has had dominance over the Chandrayangutta constituency for more than two decades.
Chandrayangutta has 65 percent Muslim voters and the Owaisi brothers have a tight grip over this part of the Old City area. The party rarely issues manifestos while contesting elections, but the two leaders' door-to-door campaigns and the AIMIM's accessibility at the party's headquarters in Darussalam have helped them keep the region close.
However, speculation was rife this time that the AIMIM would field Akbaruddin's son Nooruddin as the candidate in Chandrayangutta after he filed a surprise backup nomination. However, it was withdrawn later.
Akbaruddin is contesting against B Nagesh (Naresh) of the Congress, Muppi Seetharam Reddy of the BRS, and Kowdi Mahender of the BJP.
Karimnagar: Sitting MLA Vs Sitting MP
It's BJP versus BRS in the Karimnagar Assembly seat, where sitting MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar is battling it out with three-time sitting MLA and Cabinet Minister Gangula Kamalakar.
Sanjay Kumar, who was the state BJP chief until he was recently forced to hand over the reins to Union Minister G Kishan Reddy, has considerable presence in the constituency considering his win in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019. However, he has gone against Kamalakar twice in 2018 and 2014, and was defeated both times, albeit by eating into his margins.
Both Kamalakar and Sanjay Kumar belong to the Munnuru Kapu (BC) community – and Kamalakar is also the BC Welfare Minister. The Karimnagar constituency also has a considerable Mulsim population (18 percent), which could be key to the BRS – considering Sanjay Kumar's numerous instances of hate speech against Muslims.
The Congress candidate in the fray is BRS turncoat Purumalla Srinivas.
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