Nalgonda: With skeletal cadres, will BJP, Left successful taking on TRS?

Nalgonda: The municipal elections that are just a few days away are going to decide the fate of parties, especially the Congress, which has been strategizing to wrest power from the Telangana Rashtra Samithi. The Congress has exercised a greater power in the municipalities of erstwhile Nalgonda ever since their formation. However, it tasted defeat with the emergence of Telugu Desam Party and much later at the hands of TRS that was formed in 2001.

In the upcoming elections, the Congress party is trying its level best to restore its lost glory, while the TRS wants to continue its winning streak by sweeping the civic polls. The Bharatiya Janata Party and the Left parties that have skeletal cadres are trying to win at least a few wards.

It can be recalled that the TRS, which was formed on the basis of separate statehood, had no luck in the municipalities till 2014. However after the formation of Telangana and the party winning the Assembly polls, the TRS could gain strength in the municipalities with the defection of ward councilors and chairpersons from other parties into it.

The TRS which had hat-trick success with the Assembly, gram panchayat and Zilla Parishad elections, is going no holds barred with the municipal polls and trying to attract the voters by publicising its welfare and development schemes. The pink party is aiming to hoist its party flags in all 19 municipalities of the erstwhile Nalgonda including in the four major municipalities Nalgonda, Suryapet, Bhongir and Miryalaguda.

On the directions of Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, Energy Minister G Jagadish Reddy and party MLAs are actively taking part in campaign to garner people's support.

Coming to TDP, the yellow party won the Nalgonda, Miryalaguda, Suryapet and Bhongir municipal elections in the district soon after it came to power in 1986. However, despite coming to power in 1994, it lost Nalgonda and Bhongir to Congress and won only Miryalaguda and Suryapet in the municipal elections held in 1995. In the civic polls held in 2000, the TDP won Miryalaguda, Bhongir and also Suryapet with the support of its then alliance partner, the BJP. Congress, however, retained the Nalgonda municipality. Even though the TDP won majority wards in 2004 and 2014 elections, it failed to grab the posts of municipal chairperson. In 2014, the yellow party won seven wards and had to be contended with the Vice-chairman post leaving the Chairman post to BJP. In a jolt to the party, six of the seven councilors shifted their loyalties to TRS, weakening the already stunting TDP in the new State.

Coming to Congress, the grand old party in 2014, against the TRS wave, emerged victorious in Nalgonda, Kodad and Miryalaguda municipalities and Huzurnagar and Devarakonda Nagara Panchayats. Earlier, the party won Nalgonda, Bhongir and Miryalaguda municipalities. But in 1986 elections, it lost four municipalities to TDP. However, it won Bhongir municipality in 1995. In 2000, the party had to be contended with the Nalgonda municipality.

The BJP which had a good grip in the towns hoisted its flag in Nalgonda municipality twice and grabbed Suryapet and Bhongir municipalities chairperson seat for onetime. The lotus party bagged chairperson seat of Nalgonda municipality independently in 1980 and 1995 municipal elections, but was limited to four wards in 2014 elections. As part of TDP alliance party, it secured municipal chairperson seat of Suryapet in 2000 elections. In 2014, it secured Bhongir municipal chairperson seat with the support of TDP. BJP which is now upbeat with the success of Parliament elections is leaving no stone unturned to win the polls.