Telangana Assembly elections: BJP to compete on all 119 seats

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is all set to compete on all 119 seats in the upcoming assembly polls in Telangana. Interestingly, the saffron party is laying special emphasis on the 24 urban constituencies in and around Hyderabad.

Notably, these 24 constituencies in Hyderabad and adjoining Ranga Reddy district include the IT corridor and pockets where people from Andhra Pradesh have settled.

In the 2014 Assembly polls, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) won 15 of these seats while at least 10 MLAs later crossed over to Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS). The three Lok Sabha constituencies including Hyderabad, Secunderabad and Malkajgiri were won by All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), BJP and TDP respectively.

Sources in the Telangana BJP said that the party will take the fight even to AIMIM candidates in the Muslim-dominated old city of Hyderabad. While BJP strategists feel that the party will do well in urban constituencies.

BJP Manifesto Committee Chairman and former MLA NVSS Prabhakar said, “In 2014, TDP won 15 seats in Hyderabad because it benefited from the tie-up with BJP. All the five BJP MLAs are from urban constituencies of Hyderabad. In the coming elections, we feel that people will prefer BJP over TRS or TDP, and the anti-incumbency vote will also go to BJP. We are also looking at votes from Muslim-dominated areas which traditionally voted for AIMIM as people are unhappy with that party.”

Meanwhile, BJP MLC and National Executive member N Ramchandra Rao said besides the 24 urban seats, the party is also looking at semi-urban seats nearby. “Apart from the 24 urban seats we are also looking at constituencies like Pargi, Vikarabad, Chevella, Tandur etc. In these constituencies, BJP will gain because of fear of AIMIM. In the urban and semi-urban constituencies, a majority of the anti-incumbency vote will go to BJP,” he added.

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