Hyderabad: Despite roping in dozens of senior leaders and conducting an intensive, nearly two-month-long campaign led by BRS working president KT Rama Rao, the party suffered a setback in the Jubilee Hills bypoll. This marks the second major setback for the BRS, coming after its loss in the Secunderabad Cantonment seat to Congress over the past one and a half years.The pink party has long considered Greater Hyderabad its stronghold, as the ruling Congress failed to win even a single seat within the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits in the 2023 assembly elections. Of the 24 assembly seats in GHMC, the BRS won 16, while AIMIM secured seven. One seat went to Raja Singh, who has now quit the BJP.In the previous GHMC elections as well, the BRS bagged over 50 seats and clinched the mayoral seat with the help of AIMIM. Now, some leaders feel the party has to take corrective steps to bounce back in the upcoming GHMC polls, likely to be held next year.Analysing the reasons for the defeat in the bypoll, senior leaders opine that the low turnout of 48% played a major role, particularly as many educated voters and employees, considered the party’s supporters, did not cast their votes. “The constituency has about 30% Muslim voters, and most of them appear to have not supported the party, except in one or two divisions and some pockets, as the AIMIM did not field its candidate and openly supported the Congress. BRS concentrated on Shaikpet, which is the biggest municipal division, where it could give a tough fight to Congress,” a former minister, who actively participated in the campaign, said.The party also failed to impress the Jubilee Hills voters despite replicating the Munugode model by appointing senior leaders in each municipal division as in-charges and holding booth-level workers’ meetings. The party predicted there was a strong anti-incumbency factor that would give a mandate to the party. Some feel BRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao should have campaigned for the party candidate, saying his presence could have helped the party.Throughout the campaign, the BRS targeted the Congress govt over six guarantees and released a ‘baaki card’ (dues card). The party also sharpened its attack on the govt over HYDRAA, accusing it of targeting the poor, and even came up with the slogan ‘Car vs Bulldozer’. However, the results suggest that these narratives did not resonate with the voters.
