HYDERABAD: Only one leader who took part in the agitation for the separate statehood of Telangana from Osmania University (OU) has been elected as an MLA from the Congress. Representing the Choppadandi Assembly constituency in Karimnagar district, Medipally Satyam had previously contested from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in the 2014 elections and from the Congress in the 2018 Assembly Elections, albeit without success.
However, in the recent elections, he secured victory with a significant margin of 37,439 votes against Sunke Ravishankar of the BRS. This win also was a historic win for the Congress, as it clinched the segment after 24 years.
On the other hand, other OU leaders who participated in the Telangana movement were nominated by the BRS. Balka Suman, who had previously served as an MP from the Peddapalli Lok Sabha seat in 2014 and as an MLA from Chennur in 2018, faced defeat in the recent elections at the hands of Congress candidate G Vivek Venkata Swamy. Interestingly, Vivek had previously lost to Suman in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.
Gadari Kishore, another leader from OU, had been elected as an MLA twice from Tungaturti Assembly segment in the Nalgonda district in both the 2014 and 2018 Assembly Elections. However, in the recent elections, he faced defeat at the hands of Congress candidate Mandela Samuel.