HYDERABAD: With its focus on expanding in south India, the BJP national leadership is keen to win at least 10 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana and has been pushing its candidates to ensure this target is met.
The BJP strategy is simple — retain the sitting seats and expand the party presence in other constituencies. Accordingly, BJP candidates, both new and incumbent, are campaigning vigorously to surpass their previous margins.
The party’s four sitting MPs — G Kishan Reddy, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Dharmapuri Arvind and Soyam Bapu Rao — had won their seats comfortably in the last election. However, there have been some notable developments in the past five years.
While the party retained three incumbents, Kishan, Arvind and Sanjay, it has replaced Bapu Rao with former MP Godem Nagesh, a move aimed at strengthening BJP’s prospects in the region.
However, the political landscape in Telangana presents a different scenario this time, with both the ruling Congress and the primary opposition, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), actively vying for seats. This poses significant challenges for BJP candidates and the state party unit.
In Secunderabad, Kishan secured victory with a margin of 62,114 votes in the previous election. However, the ensuing contest is expected to be tougher due to formidable opponents like BRS’ T Padma Rao and Congress’ Danam Nagender. The battle for the Secunderabad seat is expected to be intense and will be closely followed by analysts across the country.
Similarly, in the Karimnagar Lok Sabha constituency, BJP national general secretary and the incumbent Sanjay Kumar will face stiff competition from BRS’ B Vinod Kumar, a former MP, and Congress’ Ponnam Prabhakar, transport minister in the state Cabinet. A triangular contest is expected in Karimnagar, opine observers.
Meanwhile, Nizamabad MP Arvind Dharmapuri is gearing up for a rematch against BRS’ K Kavitha, who is currently lodged in Tihar jail over her alleged involvement in the Delhi excise policy case. The Congress has nominated MLC T Jeevan Reddy. With significant attention on Kavitha, Nizamabad is set to be one of the most closely followed constituencies.
In Adilabad, where the incumbent Bapu Rao was denied a ticket this time, the BJP faces a tough fight against Congress and BRS. With Athram Suguna (Congress) and former MLA Athram Sakku (BRS) in the fray, the electoral dynamics in Adilabad have changed considerably over recent times.