Telangana elections 2023: After a pulsating campaign, the ball is in the voter’s court

The election in India’s youngest state is also being keenly watched as it comes in the runup to the 2024 parliamentary elections.

The time has come for Telangana’s 3.26 crore voters to exercise their franchise and decide the fate of the state’s two major political parties, the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Indian National Congress, which have been in a fierce fight to wrest the popular mandate.

Though the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has lost its sheen, the saffron party might still increase its seat share, while All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), which has seven sitting MLAs, may find it difficult to retain them. The Congress, traditionally strong in eastern Telangana, is eyeing gains in the South and North, with the 25 seats in the Hyderabad capital region especially significant.

The election in India’s youngest state is also being keenly watched as it comes in the runup to the 2024 parliamentary elections. Political pundits are waiting to see if the Congress can revive its fortunes in this southern state.

In the lead-up to the elections, intense campaigning by political stalwarts has characterised the political landscape. While Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and Revanth Reddy were the Congress heavyweights who indulged in aggressive propaganda, Prime Minister Narender Modi, home minister Amit Shah and a host of other BJP big guns toured the state vigorously vying to woo the voters.

The ruling party saw chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao crisscross the state after launching the BRS campaign in Husnabad on October 15, where he announced the party manifesto. Rao addressed his 96th and final meeting on the last day of campaigning on November 28 in Gajwel, where he is seeking to be elected a third time. Folk singers Epuri Somanna and Madhu Priya have electrified the BRS’s colourful meetings with patriotic party songs, including the popular ‘Ramakka’. The ruling party, however, faces a strong anti-incumbency factor this time around.

The BRS banked on the development plank and continued to raise the Telangana sentiment with KCR reminding the masses that he had pledged his life to gain statehood with the slogan “KCR sajjudo, Telangana vachudo (a separate Telangana state or the death of KCR)”. Even as the chief minister led the campaign from the front, his son and BRS working president KT Rama Rao, and finance minister T Harish Rao ably assisted him along with his daughter K Kavitha.

The Congress, meanwhile, offered six poll guarantees, as it did in neighbouring Karnataka. During the campaign leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra often used the slogan "Marpu kavali, Congress ravali" Another pet theme that the Gandhi siblings harped on was: “We want Prajala (people’s) Telangana not Dorala (landlord’s) Telangana.”

The BJP, which dominated a few assembly bypolls and the 2020 Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation polls, failed to consolidate its base despite the personal appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose multiple visits along with other saffron big guns, could not lift party workers’ morale.

The failure of the Dharani portal, an Integrated Land Records System launched by the incumbent government, Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project barrage which has come under the scrutiny of the National Dam Safety Authority after six piers showed signs of damage, and single family rule were some of the key issues raised by the Congress in its campaign.

The perceived threat of a ‘BRS-BJP deal’ for the 2024 elections and KCR keeping away from the INDIA bloc has seen a section of Muslims (who voted for the BRS in 2018) move towards the Congress. The caste census did not figure much in the public domain but unemployment was a major talking point among youth.

With Telangana getting the home-voting option, 15,999 senior citizens, 9,459 persons with disabilities, and 1,720 essential services employees—27,178 voters in all—have already availed of that option. About 10,191 postal ballots were cast by service voters, while 1.48 lakh employees on election duty have also exercised their vote. The 35,655 polling stations will be monitored by 3,803 sector officers, who will have magisterial powers and police support.

The BRS is contesting all 119 seats, while the BJP and Jana Sena Party coalition has put up candidates in 111 seats. The Congress has fielded candidates in 118 seats, allocating one to ally Communist Party of India (CPI), while the AIMIM is contesting in nine seats. In all, there are 2,290 contestants in the fray.

The electorate comprises 1,63,13,268 men, 1,63,02,261 women, and 2,676 third-gender persons. In 78 of the 119 constituencies, women voters outnumber men. Just as in 2018, this year, too, more women are expected to exercise their franchise.

Assembly polls in four other states have already been completed. The poll results for all five states, including Telangana, will be declared on December 3.