AIMIM's Asaduddin Owaisi wins by over 3.38 lakh votes against BJP's Madhavi Latha in Hyderabad

Despite AIMIM controlling six out of the seven seats in the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, the competition between Asaduddin Owaisi and Madhavi Latha remains intense.

Exit polls had suggested that the battle between the two candidates may go down to the wire, with Owaisi ultimately securing a win.

Newcomer Latha, the BJP’s first woman candidate from Telangana’s capital, is challenging Owaisi’s dominance in the predominantly Muslim constituency by focusing on issues such as development, women’s rights, and alleged Muslim radicalisation. Despite her efforts, Owaisi remains popular among Muslim voters and enjoys a strong base in the constituency.

However, for the past four General Elections, Owaisi has won the election by landslide margins.

For instance, in the 2019 elections, Owaisi won the seat with 58.94 percent of the votes cast. With a voter turnout of 44.84 percent, he garnered the support of 26.43 percent of the total electorate in the Hyderabad parliamentary constituency.

The 2019 elections was also his biggest win, with Owaisi securing over 2.82 lakh votes from his nearest candidate, BJP's Bhagavanth Rao. While, the Hyderabad MP amassed a mammoth 5,17,471 votes, BJP's Rao was the distant second with 2,35,056.

How Hyderabad has historically voted

In past couple of decades, the contest for the Hyderabad Lok Sabha has always seemed one-sided with AIMIM's dominance, but it wasn't always so.
Historically, the constituency, now comprising Malakpet, Karwan, Goshamahal, Charminar, Chandrayangutta, Yakutpura, and Bahadurpura, was a Congress stronghold. In the 1952 elections, leftists dominated Hyderabad, with the Communist-led People's Democratic Front winning significant support.

By 1957, disillusionment with the communists led voters to switch to Congress, particularly after the formation of Andhra Pradesh. It was then, that the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, which had been banned after Hyderabad's accession to India for past violence, re-entered politics.

Rebranding itself to All India MIM, the party targeted the fragmented Communist voter base but initially struggling to consolidate minority votes.

The 1970s saw increased electoral polarisation, especially with the entry of the Jana Sangh Party, leading to communal tensions and frequent riots in Hyderabad.

AIMIM gained a foothold in 1984 when Sultan Salahuddin Owaisi won the Parliamentary seat narrowly. Delimitation in 2008 reshaped the constituency, favoring AIMIM by excluding areas like Vikarabad, Tandur, and Chevella, which had competitive elections.