HYDERABAD: With the Jubilee Hills by-election fast approaching, the Congress has stepped up its preparations, projecting slum development and urban transformation as its key electoral plank. The ruling party aims to leverage the development narrative to consolidate its base in the Greater Hyderabad region.
On Saturday, senior Congress leader and Hyderabad district in-charge minister Ponnam Prabhakar, along with minister Thummala Nageshwar Rao and TPCC working president Mohammed Azharuddin, held a crucial preparatory meeting at Vengal Rao Nagar division with booth in-charges, corporators, and local leaders.
The meeting also saw the participation of corporation chairpersons Anil Eravarthi, Janga Raghava Reddy, Royal Nageshwar Rao, Gutta Amit Reddy, and several other leaders.
The session carried added weight as Mohammed Azharuddin is widely tipped to be the party’s candidate for the by-election, which was necessitated by the sudden demise of sitting MLA Maganti Gopinath.
Addressing the gathering, minister Ponnam Prabhakar said the by-election was not merely about filling a vacant seat but an opportunity to change the trajectory of Jubilee Hills. He alleged that the constituency had suffered neglect for years and stressed that the Congress, now in power in Telangana, was in the best position to complete long-pending works.
“Jubilee Hills has faced years of neglect. Now, with Congress in power, people should give us a chance to hoist the party flag here. Just as we won the Cantonment by-election, victory in Jubilee Hills will pave the way for development,” he said.
Highlighting the government’s urban development agenda, Prabhakar said Hyderabad was witnessing major improvements in roads, drainage, and sanitation, with the ambition of firmly placing the city on the global map. He criticised previous governments for failing to secure any additional water for the city beyond the Krishna and Godavari allocations and for underperforming in infrastructure development.
“The Congress government is ensuring steady development. If Jubilee Hills elects a Congress MLA, the process of transformation will accelerate further. This by-election should be seen as an opportunity to solve local problems and reshape the constituency’s future,” Prabhakar asserted.