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Vans plastered with candidates’ smiling photographs have been doing the rounds on the roads in parts of Rahmat Nagar, Borabanda, Tawakkalnagar and Shaikpet, among other neighbourhoods. Songs extolling the candidate’s party are blaring from the speakers atop them. And canvassing on foot is in full swing. This year, electors of the Jubilee Hills Assembly Constituency say, campaigning is shrill. Some say, more than the 2023 elections. As many as 4,01,365 electors spread across 407 polling stations will decide the political fate of candidates in the fray: Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s (BRS) Maganti Sunitha, Congress’ V. Naveen Yadav and the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Lankala Deepak Reddy. “All parties have been campaigning hard. Many Congress leaders and others were moving in Erragadda ward,” says Md. Saleem, a 46-year old, who works in one of the several business establishments near the Erragadda Metro Station. Away from the wide, arterial thoroughfare, and into one of the narrow bylanes is Zehra Gulshan Bagh. “We have narrow roads, which are cracked. There was a problem of sewage water clogging, and overflowing near the masjid here. It becomes difficult to deal with this. But recently we submitted a representation. They said that action would be taken,” says Syed Ahmed Khaleel, a local. Krishna Rao, who works in administration in a private company is a resident of Madhura Nagar. He points out that unscheduled power cuts are not uncommon in the area. Water supply too could be improved, he adds. “Every few days, we have to deal with a power cut of 15 minutes to half-an-hour. The issue is rectified only when messages are sent or calls are made to officials. As regards the water supply, instead of two hours, we get water for, maybe, an hour-and-a-half, on many occasions,” Mr. Rao maintained. Bogini Venkatesh, a resident of Moti Nagar near Erragadda, runs errands for private offices to earn a living. He says that he is unaware of government schemes such as pensions. However, he remembers that the road near his house, when he moved into the area in 1983, was laid by the Congress legislator, the late P. Janardhan Reddy. He however claims that he hadn’t decided whom to vote for. With the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen not only throwing their weight behind Congress’ candidate Naveen Yadav, but also conducting frequent strategy meetings, and its legislators actively on the ground, a pitched campaign is expected. In the 2023 Assembly elections, the AIMIM had fielded Shaikpet corporator Mohd. Rashed Farazuddin, who came fourth and garnered 7,848 votes. With the party now choosing not to contest, it is likely that their clear support for the Congress will include efforts to improve polling percentages. “Of the 4 lakh votes, around 1.4 lakh are Muslims. The MIM [AIMIM] is focussing on turning this vote to the Congress, though there continues to be some amount of support for the BRS within the Muslim community,” a party worker said. The BRS is leaving no stone unturned to serenade the Muslim voters. BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao earlier this month met Ahmed Naqshbandi, a faith leader with a considerable following, at his residence in Shaikpet, from where he launched a salvo at the Congress, alleging that the party had ignored the Muslim community. Apart from development and civic issues, including waterlogging and flooding when it rains heavily in certain areas, a talking point was of a graveyard for Muslims. All parties — the Congress, AIMIM and BRS — had articulated their positions. Interestingly, Salman Khan, founder of Hyderabad Youth Courage, who was actively campaigning in the area, and promised welfare measures to locals, had raised the issue of the land for a graveyard. After his nomination was rejected, Mr. Khan joined the BRS in the presence of Mr. Rao. In 2023, the late Maganti Gopinath had won with 80,549 votes. Mohammed Azharuddin, who was sworn in as Minister designate on October 31, secured 64,212 votes, and BJP’s Lankala Deepak Reddy got 25,866 votes.
