Hyderabad: With Mohd Azharuddin out of the race, all eyes are on the Congress leadership in Telangana to see who be the party’s candidate for the upcoming Jubilee Hills by election. While no one has been announced officially so far, the names of Congress leaders G Ranjith Reddy and Naveen Yadav are currently doing rounds as possible candidates.
A senior Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) said that the seat will be given to a local person from the constituency and that Naveen Yadav and ex-MP Ranjith Reddy have emerged as strong candidates. While there was some speculation that Feroze Khan could also be an option, his candidacy will not go down well with the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) which is going to support the ruling Congress in Telangana.
Feroze Khan lost the Nampally seat to AIMIM’s Majid Hussain by just over 2000 votes in the 2023 Assembly election. “He will be a good option but the AIMIM definitely won’t support him. More than Naveen Yadav, Ranjith Reddy is also a good candidate as he is a local and is strong financially. But it is to be seen who the high command chooses,” the TPCC leader told Siasat.com.
The upcoming Jubilee Hills by election is going to have high stakes for the ruling Congress which is looking to wrest it from the main opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). The bypoll has been necessitated after the late BRS legislator Maganti Gopinath passed away recently. The ruling party here was unable to win any seat in the Greater Hyderabad area in the 2023 state elections and hence winning that will of utmost importance for it.
While the BRS is sitting strong in the Jubilee Hills by election, the party has been currently hit by internal rebellion. K Kavitha, ex-MLC and daughter of BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR), was suspended from the party on September 2 for her criticism of BRS leaders (and her cousin) Harish Rao and Santosh. Kavitha a day later on September 3 then resigned from the BRS and her MLC post.
The inner feud is likely to also cause damage to the party’s reputation which may affect the BRS’ prospects in the upcoming Jubilee Hills by election.
Azharuddin out way of the way for bypolls
Soon after Gopinath’s death possible names of Congress candidates began floating, including that of ex-Indian cricketer Mohd Azharuddin, who had unsuccessfully contested against Gopinath. To avoid any issues that may arise after not giving him the ticket, Azharuddin was nominated as an MLC under the Governor’s quota by the state government, paving way for the candidacy of a stronger candidate.
The TPCC leader said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may polarise minority votes which may help the main opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) to win and hence giving Azharuddin the seat would not be a great idea. “Moreover, locals prefer a person from the area itself. If Azhar loses for a second time his career will be over. He is a celebrity and not a politician,” the Congress leader added.
The AIMIM had supported the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which won the Jubilee Hills seat, in the December 2023 Assembly polls by putting up a candidate who drew a chunk of Muslim votes which would have otherwise gone to the Congress.
Jubilee Hills by-poll may be triangular fight
In the 2023 elections for the Jubilee Hills seat, Gopinath secured 80,549 votes, while Congress candidate and former Indian cricket team captain Mohd Azharuddin came second with 64,212 votes. Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Lanka Deepak Reddy also managed to secure over 25000 votes, while AIMIM candidate Rasheed Farazuddin came fourth with 7848 votes.
This time the contest will also likely be triangular, as the BJP has made some inroads in the city and state. The party managed to get 20% of the vote share in the 2023 Assembly elections and nearly half the vote share in the subsequent 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The AIMIM had maintained “friendly” relations with the BRS since it came into power in 2014 in the state. The Owaisi-headed party also supported it in the 2023 polls, but shifted sides to the Congress after it came to power.
