Hyderabad: Hyderabad’s In-charge Minister Ponnam Prabhakar today clarified that the Congress party will allocate the ticket for the Jubilee Hills by-election to a local candidate, stating that individuals from outside the constituency would not be considered this time.

Speaking to media persons in the presence of cricketer-turned-politician Mohammad Azharuddin, Ponnam gave a clear indication that Azharuddin would contest once again from the key constituency. The Transport Minister affirmed that party cadres would work unitedly for the victory of whichever candidate is fielded by the party high command. He exuded confidence that the Congress party would hoist its flag in the Jubilee Hills constituency.

The by-election for the Jubilee Hills seat was necessitated by the death of the sitting MLA Maganti Gopinath of the BRS. Gopinath, who had defeated his nearest rival, Azharuddin, by over 16,000 votes in 2023, died of cardiac arrest on June 8. Azharuddin, who also serves as PCC Working President, had earlier declared himself as a candidate amidst speculation that the party was unlikely to field him in the by-election.

For Jubilee Hills, scores of party leaders are vying to contest. Besides Azharuddin, former Mayor BonthuRammohan, TMREIS chairman Md Faheemuddin Qureshi, former PCC working president Jetti Kusum Kumar, V Naveen Yadav (who contested from AIMIM in 2014), C Rohin Reddy (who recently contested from Amberpet), and numerous others are eyeing the ticket. Azharuddin, who recently attended the Political Affairs Committee (PAC) meeting, has made his intentions clear that he is willing to contest once again from the Jubilee Hills constituency, despite his loss in the 2023 Assembly polls.

Bonthu Rammohan, who had maintained a low profile until recent days following his failure to secure the Secunderabad MP ticket, is once again attempting to re-enter the limelight and claims to have a strong grip on constituents. His wife, Sridevi, the Cherlapally division corporator, is said to have a good support base in the constituency. Coming from the Kamma caste, Kusum Kumar had previously sought an MLC position, with his candidature also backed by former MLC T Jagga Reddy, citing the need for proper representation for Kammas.