AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has appealed to the minority voters in Jubilee Hills constituency to ensure that the BJP does not become a force in the upcoming by-elections. Owaisi also criticised the previous BRS government, saying that neither its sitting MLA nor the government had done any development work in the constituency. Significantly, AIMIM had fielded its own candidate to cut into the Congress vote bank in the 2023 Assembly elections, ensuring the victory of the BRS candidate. However, this time he has extended support to the ruling Congress.
Addressing a public meeting yesterday, Owaisi said, “We should make sure that the BJP does not increase its political space here. BJP should not become a force here.” The Jubilee Hills constituency has substantial minority voters whose support would be crucial for both the BRS and Congress to win this election. Owaisi criticised the previous BRS MLA Maganti Gopinath and the BRS government for a lack of development in the key constituency, which includes both posh localities and slums. “I say this with responsibility that the earlier MLA and the past government did not execute a single job. Whatever has been done, it was only after I approached the GHMC commissioner or the higher-ups in the government,” claimed the AIMIM president while reading out a long list of pending works. The BRS has given the ticket to Sunitha Gopinath, the widow of the previous MLA. Taking a dig at the previous MLA’s focus on real estate, Owaisi even warned, “It should not happen that once the election gets over, then only those places where there are empty buildings or vacant plots get developed.”
Owaisi claimed he has handed over a list of development works required in the constituency to the Chief Minister, who has assured him that he will get it done. The Hyderabad MP urged the voters to elect a young person who would be able to see to its development instead of concentrating only on real estate.
The Congress is likely to nominate Naveen Yadav as its candidate. A young gun, he had contested from this constituency as an AIMIM candidate, but the party did not give him the ticket in 2023. He had filed his nomination as an independent but later withdrew in favour of Congress candidate Mohammad Azharuddin. The former cricketer, this time, has been promised an MLC seat, paving the road for Yadav’s nomination.