Congress springs surprise at TRS in Bhongir

Hyderabad: It will be a tough poll battle between the ruling TRS and main opposition Congress to win the Bhongir Parliamentary constituency which has the blessings of Lord Lakshminarasimha Swamy, the biggest temple in the Telangana region.

Senior leader of Telangana Congress Komatireddy Venkat Reddy's surprise entry into the TRS stronghold Bhongir Parliamentary constituency is giving jitters to the ruling party. TRS sitting MP and the most probable candidate from the Lok Sabha segment B Narasiah Goud, who is sure of his victory before Reddy's entry has to put in more energies to retain the seat for the second consecutive term.

It is also not a cakewalk for Reddy to win the seat as five out of seven assembly segments which come under the Bhongir jurisdiction are won by TRS in the recent assembly elections. Taking the advantage of the popularity maintained by his younger brother and Munugodu MLA Rajagopal Reddy in the Bhongir Lok Sabha segment, Venkat Reddy, who lost the elections from the Nalgonda assembly constituency, is testing the waters again.

The Reddy brothers have good fan following in Munugodu, Nakrekal assembly segments and parts of Ibrahimpatnam, Alair and Bhongir assembly constituencies. In a major disappointment, Reddy's close aide and Nakrekal MLA Ch Lingaiah announced joining the ruling TRS.

TRS was strong enough in the Bhongir Lok Sabha segment and Narasiah Goud is also maintaining strong cadre network and support from all TRS legislators. He was also instrumental in getting the Centre's nod to set up the long-pending All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the Bhongir assembly segment.

Goud won the seat by a majority of s mere 30,000 votes against Rajagopal Reddy in the 2014 elections. During the first term of TRS regime between 2014 and 2018, the party has been strengthened with the influx of district and assembly segment level Congress leaders in Bhongir Lok Sabha constituency which is considered one of the main constituencies to be won by TRS without any political hurdles.

The fight between Venkat Reddy and Goud will be a tough poll battle and the two contestants will have to struggle hard to win the seat. Congress candidate's brother Rajagopal Reddy will play a key role in the election as he developed a strong party network under his leadership during his tenure as MP between 2009 and 2014.

The major challenge before Venkat Reddy is to keep the flock together from the allurements by the ruling party till the election date on April 11 and get the people's support in all TRS won segments. TRS MP Goud has emerged as a strong leader in the Lok Sabha segment by conducting regular service programmes like health camps and assistance to the poor for the last five years.

He is holding strong network in Bhongir, Jangaon, Tungathurthi and parts of Alair assembly segments. KCR's charisma and the ongoing state government-sponsored welfare schemes will be an added advantage for the TRS candidate to get more votes in the ensuing elections.