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How important is the Jubilee Hills byelection at this juncture for the party? Every election is important and this one is especially significant for me as it’s the first since I became State unit president. We secured 25,000 votes in the last Assembly election and increased that to 65,000 in the segment during the Lok Sabha elections. Our goal is not just to win but to further increase our vote share here. Politically, this election is crucial for the party’s future in Telangana — it has the potential to change the course of politics in the State. Byelections usually favour the ruling party. Why do you believe this one is different? That’s a common perception, but recent bypolls like Huzurabad and Dubbak constituencies, and earlier when our leader Narendra won in the then Himayatnagar constituency, prove otherwise. The BJP has a track record of winning byelections, and I’m confident we’ll win this one too. It will pave the way for BJP’s future in Telangana. What is your campaign strategy for this byelection? Our strategy is straightforward. The Congress Party has made a strategic blunder by fielding a candidate borrowed from the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), indicating they lack strong candidates of their own. The image of their candidate is weak, and the party’s reputation is tarnished by the corruption charges and its association with the AIMIM. The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), meanwhile, is busy fighting over the distribution of ill-gotten wealth from their time in power. Essentially, this is a contest between the BJP and the AIMIM, and that will be our narrative. We’ll also appeal to voters to give BJP a chance, having already tried Congress and the BRS. Your party talks of BCs empowerment, yet could find a BC candidate to field for the byelection. Why? Caste wasn’t the deciding factor. We chose to retain Lankala Deepak Reddy, who contested last time and is now the district president. He’s been active, has the support of the cadre and there was no reason to replace him. The BJP enjoys strong BCs support — our Prime Minister is from the BC community, and 27 Union Ministers are BCs. We have given constitutional status to the National BC Commission. For the first time since 1931, we’re going to include the caste column in the census. So, I don’t believe this will negatively impact the election. You’ve mentioned city development being neglected over the past decade. Can you elaborate? Our ally and Chief Minister of the then undivided Andhra Pradesh N. Chandrababu Naidu had a vision for Hyderabad during Atal Behari Vajpayee’s tenure as Prime Minister. Credit goes to the NDA government for projects like Cyber City and the Gachibowli Sports Complex. While development continued under successive governments, it’s been concentrated in the western corridor. The core city suffers — waterlogging turns roads into rivers, there are cases of people falling into open manholes, getting electrocuted and potholes are everywhere. Citizens fear Hyderabad Disaster Management and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA) and are sceptical about Musi River redevelopment. The government fails to allocate sufficient funds to GHMC and related departments, while new areas outside GHMC limits are being developed. What are the key issues in the Jubilee Hills constituency? Things look fine until it rains — then it’s all water. Ironically, Jubilee Hills itself isn’t part of the segment. The constituency largely comprises lower-middle-class and poor residents living in slums. Borabanda, one of the largest slums, is a part of the constituency, and civic amenities are severely lacking. You’ve completed 100 days as president. How has the journey been? It’s been hectic and challenging. I’ve toured 25 districts and announced committees with young, energetic members. We’re already in election mode due to the local body poll announcement, though it was stayed due to the State government’s misadventure. Still, we’re prepared. We’ve finalised 90% of candidates for MPTC and ZPTC in the first phase. For the second phase, our in-charges have toured districts and submitted reports for the next round of selections. Will BCs get more representation in candidate selection? Absolutely. BC representation is a key criterion, along with the winnability factor.
