Telangana Polls: A look at each party's key bastion

Telangana, India’s youngest state, is buzzing with high-voltage campaigning and a barrage of promises aimed at wooing its 3.17 crore voters. While BRS hopes to overcome anti-incumbency for the third time in a row, the Congress has emerged as an indomitable force, particularly following a significant victory in the neighbouring state of Karnataka. The BJP is also gaining ground, particularly in the northern districts of the state, while AIMIM appears unbeatable in the Hyderabad region.

As the elections in this state draw nearer, we take a closer look at each party's key strongholds.

BRS

Despite facing criticism for dynastic rule, the BRS party maintains influence over 20-25 "safe" seats, particularly in the southern region and western border districts of Northern Telangana. These districts include Narayanpet, Jogulamba Gadwal, Wanaparthy, Mahabubnagar, Nagarkurnool, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Vikarabad, and Rangareddy.

In the 2018 elections, the BRS won 14 out of 14 seats in Mahabubnagar, except for Kollapur, and 9 out of 12 seats in the old combined Nalgonda district.

Harshavardhan Reddy, who won Kollapur, later joined the BRS, solidifying their hold at 14 out of 14 seats in Mahabubnagar and further strengthening their position. The BRS is now aiming for a repeat performance in Mahabubnagar.

One crucial constituency to monitor is Sircilla, known as the textile hub of Telangana. Situated on the banks of the Manair river, Sircilla gained notoriety as the "epicenter" of weavers' suicides during the power loom crisis in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

KT Rama Rao, the working president of the ruling BRS party and Telangana Industries Minister, is seeking his fifth consecutive victory in Sircilla, a stronghold that was once held by the Communist Party but has now become a BRS bastion.

The Congress party has fielded KK Mahander Reddy, a 62-year-old advocate who previously contested from Sircilla in 2009, 2010 (by-election), and 2018 without success.

In the Kamareddy assembly segment, a KCR home turf, the incumbent Chief Minister will face off against Anumula Revanth Reddy.

The BRS chief is also contesting from the Gajwel Assembly constituency.

CONGRESS

Kodangal is the constituency where Anumula Revanth Reddy, state Congress chief, is running for election. While Reddy is also contesting in Kamareddy to challenge Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, Kodangal is considered his stronghold.

He has previously won there twice, in 2009 and 2014, representing the TDP party before becoming a Congress MP from Malkajgiri in 2019.

During the tenure of Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Andhra Pradesh was a stronghold for the Congress party. Y S Rajasekhara Reddy won a second consecutive term as Chief Minister in 2009 before his untimely death in a helicopter crash. The state also contributed the largest number of Congress MPs to the UPA government led by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. However, post the formation of a separate Telangana, Congress lost its support base in both states.

Yellareddy in Nizamabad, where the Congress party achieved its biggest victory in 2018, was one of the few exceptions.

AIMIM

There are seven seats in Old Hyderabad — Charminar, Nampally, Chandrayangutta, Bahadurpura, Malakpet, Yakutpura, and Karwan — which are considered to be the stronghold of the Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM, a BRS ally, as the party swept these segments in last two elections with considerable margins.

BJP

The BJP is sparsely present in Telangana, with its impact felt predominantly in the northern part of the state.

Aside from the Hyderabad region, the BJP is only competitive in a handful of constituencies. One notable constituency is Kalwakurthy, where the BJP's Talloju Achary, who narrowly lost by 3,447 votes in 2018, is confident of defeating the incumbent Gurka Jaipal Yadav, a three-time MLA.

In areas where the BJP has some support, three-cornered contests are observed, especially in the former districts of Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Adilabad, Greater Hyderabad, Mahbubnagar, and Warangal.

In the 2014 elections, the BJP also secured victory in four other seats—Uppal, Musheerabad, Amberpet, and Khairatabad—but lost them to the BRS in 2018. The upcoming elections will determine whether the BJP has managed to regain its voter base in these constituencies.

Telangana, India’s youngest state, formed through the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014, has a voting population of 3.17 crore and is set to go to the polls on November 30. The results are slated to be declared on December 3.