WARANGAL: Like other parts of the State, a triangular contest is expected in all the Assembly constituencies that come under the erstwhile Warangal district. While the Congress is still perceived to have its base intact in the district, the infighting in the grand old party will test its hegemony even as the BJP is doing its best to make inroads.
There is intense competition in the Congress for party tickets for Warangal East, Narsampet, Mulugu, Jangaon, Dornakal and Bhupalpally constituencies where the party is expected to overshadow the BRS. On its part, the BJP is working hard in these constituencies to make a mark.
In the last elections, Congress won the Mulugu Assembly seat (Danasari Anasuya alias Seethakka) and Jayashankar Bhupalapally (Gandra Venkataramana Reddy). However, Gandra switched over to the ruling BRS. The Congress is expected to take the fight to the BRS in Jangaon, Narsampet and Dornakal this year.
However, infighting in the party will benefit the ruling BRS in Jangaon, Palakurthy and Warangal East and West constituencies. Congress leaders Ponnala Lakshmaiah and Kommuru Pratap Reddy are at odds with each other, and it is due to this that the BRS is expected to benefit.
Janga Raghava Reddy, who is the Jangaon District Congress president, contested for Palakurthy in 2018. Sources say that he is not inclined to contest from Palakurthy again this time and is instead eyeing the Warangal West seat. However, Warangal DCC president N Rajender Reddy is also keen on this seat.
With the Konda couple expressing their desire to switch from the Parakala Assembly constituency to Warangal East, BRS sitting MLA N Narender is expected to take advantage. Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao’s brother Pradeep Rao is also planning to contest from this seat on a BJP ticket, sources say.
The BRS is likely to field N Narender from Warangal East, Errabelli Dayakar Rao from Palakurthy, Aroori Ramesh from Wardhannapet and Dr T Rajaiah from Station Ghanapur. Sources said that Telangana State Planning Board vice-chairman B Vinod Kumar is eyeing the Warangal West ticket. Vinod Kumar had represented Hanamkonda in the Lok Sabha and is presently conducting meetings with his supporters in the Warangal West constituency (Hanamkonda).
Narsampet sitting MLA Peddireddy Sudharshan Reddy is expected to face a tough fight from both the Congress and BJP as the former MLA from the constituency, Revuri Prakash Reddy of the saffron party, and Donti Madhava Reddy of the grand old party, have started door-to-door campaigning and have been touring the constituency.
In Mulugu, sitting MLA Seethakka has been meeting her supporters while Gandra Satyanarayana is looking to contest for the Bhupalapally constituency from where he lost by a slender margin. Similarly, Maloth Nehru Naik from Dornakal had lost by a slender margin.
The BRS may find the going tough in Parakala and Mahabubabad constituencies. In Parakala, sitting MLA Challa Dharma Reddy is expected to face a stiff challenge from Dr P Vijayachander Reddy of the BJP and Inugala Venkat Ram Reddy of the Congress. Likewise, sitting MLA Banoth Shankar Naik is expected to be up against former Union minister Balaram Naik of the Congress and Hussain Naik of the BJP, who lost the Mahabubabad Lok Sabha seat narrowly in 2019. To make the going tougher for the BRS, internal strife has reared its ugly head in the constituency.
However, Government Chief Whip Dasyam Vinay Bhaskar told Express that the BRS would sweep all the Assembly constituencies in the erstwhile Warangal district.
“The BRS cadre has strengthened and our government has developed all the constituencies, irrespective of the parties representing them in the Assembly. In particular, the BRS government spent thousands of crores to develop the Warangal West constituency. There is no chance for any other party in the coming election,” Vinay Bhaskar said.
Contradicting him, Seethakka of the Congress said that her party would win eight seats in the erstwhile Warangal district. “We are encouraging all our cadres and leaders to work hard and ensure the Congress wins. The people no longer believe the falsehoods spawned by BRS leaders. The Congress will win eight Assembly seats and defeat the BRS,” Seethakka said.