BRS banks on good governance, Congress on veteran, BJP on grassroots connect, for victory in Musheerabad

Parliament: Secunderabad

District: Hyderabad

MLA: Muta Gopal (Gangaputra)

Reservation: GEN

Total Voters: 2,87,195

Booths: 274

Urban Voters: 100%

Rural Voters: 0%

Male: 53 %

Female: 46%

Caste & Religious Demography

Gen + BC: 91 %

SC: 7%

ST: 2%

Hindu:74 %

Muslim: 17%

Others : 2 %

Candidates Profile

Muta Gopal (BRS)

Gopal was born to M Rajaiah and Rajeswari in Gandhinagar, Hyderabad. He is married to Saroja and they have a son and a daughter. He graduated in BA (Political Science) from Vinayaka Mission University in Tamil Nadu. Gopal gained prominence for his social work while carrying out his sand and construction business. He has been in public life for the past 40 years and started his journey with the TDP. When he joined the TRS (now BRS) and won in 2018, he was appointed the party’s BC cell president.

Anjan Kumar Yadav Mandadi (Congress)

He was born in 1961 and had joined the Congress as early as 1974. He became the president of Hyderabad City Congress Committee in 2001 and later as the working president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee. He represented the Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency from 2004 to 2014. He is campaigning on foot everyday in the constituency and is talking about the work done in his tenure as an MP.

Poosa Raju (BJP)

Poosa Raju is known for his political work at the grassroots level and for community engagement. He has been campaigning that his family has been involved in politics for a long time, and that he is delighted that the BJP has given him the opportunity to contest the Musheerabad Assembly seat as a representative of the BC Gangaputra community. He said that his father had aspired to contest from the Congress party in the past but never received a ticket.

Constituency information

Geography

As per the estimates, there are 32 per cent Muslims in the constituency. It has six GHMC divisions of which the BJP won in five and the AIMIM won in one division in the last municipal elections.

Background

Out of 16 elections, the Congress has been very strong in the past and won nine times. The BJP, the BRS and the Janata Party won twice from here and an independent had this seat once. Since the constituency is majorly populated by labourers, union leaders such as Anjaiah (Congress) and Nayini Narasimha Reddy (the Janata Party, the BRS) became MLAs. Musheerabad is categorised as an urban seat and is a commercial area.

2014 Election Analysis

• There was huge anti-incumbency in the segment in 2014. Incumbent MLA T Manemma from the Congress was elected from the constituency but no developments took place though she was in power for six years. She stayed in Banjara Hills and never visited the constituency due to age-related issues. She had zero ground presence.
• T Manemma's son T Srinivas Reddy and his cousin Arjun Reddy looked after the constituency. Before the elections, she promised to relocate the 33KV power line from the Gandhinagar division, to build Indiramma houses but didn’t complete it.
• BJP candidate Laxman’s main vote bank was from the labour union (SC majority) + good percentage of Muslim votes.
• The failed promises of Manemma helped K Laxman secure the seat.
• The labour union was extremely disappointed with T Manemma and supported K Laxman

2018 Election Analysis:

• Laxman failed to win his seat as he didn’t deliver on his multiple promise. Word spread that since he became the BJP president, he did not focus on his constituency.
• The TRS (now BRS) and the Congress were successful in propagating that Laxman was not available for the public to hear their grievances.
• BRS candidate Muta Gopal promised to have houses in survey number 59 in Bapuji Nagar regularised. Nayini Narasimha Reddy was the star campaigner in the constituency. He also had an efficient cadre in Ramnagar, Musheerabad and Adikmet divisions. This helped the BRS retain connections with labour unions.
• Muta promised to solve water problem issues in Bholakpur and shift the leather industry to the outskirts of Hyderabad which was polluting groundwater.

Current Situation

• Post the loss in 2018,, the BJP has been concentrating on strengthening cadre at the grassroots
• The party became strong and secured five divisions in the GHMC elections.
• The municipal election was a shock to the BRS MLA as his son Jayasimha had organised meetings in constituencies to solve the anti-incumbency problem.

Key Local Issues:

• Leather industry problem
• 33 kv and 11kv line
• Regularisation of constructed houses