The Telangana branch of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has officially put an end to speculation, naming Lankala Deepak Reddy as its candidate for the Jubilee Hills Assembly by-election on November 11. This decision comes after a period of considerable internal debate.
Reddy, a former leader from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), previously vied for this seat in the December 2023 Assembly elections, where he placed third with 25,866 votes. The late Manganti Gopinath of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) had secured the victory then, triumphing over Congress candidate and former cricketer Mohd. Azharuddin by a significant margin of 16,337 votes. This upcoming by-election was triggered by Gopinath’s unfortunate passing.
The Jubilee Hills constituency is part of the Secunderabad Lok Sabha area, a seat currently held by Union Minister for Coal and Mines, G. Kishan Reddy. His significant influence was palpable throughout the candidate selection, with even N. Ramchander Rao, the BJP Telangana president, ultimately yielding to Reddy’s preference. This occurred despite earlier indications that the decision would be made by the party’s election committee and central parliamentary board.
In the days leading up to the announcement, numerous potential candidates were considered. Senior party figures advocated for individuals from Backward Classes, as well as sons of former ministers from both the Congress and TDP administrations. This internal jostling even saw an MP publicly backing a former Mayor, a move that reportedly displeased G. Kishan Reddy, who seemed wary of leaders from outside Hyderabad interfering in his local political sphere.
The BJP initially faced challenges in identifying a candidate with the ideal profile for the constituency, despite interest from several women within politically prominent communities. It now appears that Deepak Reddy had received informal assurances of the nomination well in advance, as he had already commenced his campaign activities.
BJP chief spokesperson N.V. Subash clarified that while the party generally avoids changing candidates for by-elections, the national-level committees’ approval process led to the delay in the official announcement. All attention is now fixed on Deepak Reddy’s performance in what is widely anticipated to be a head-to-head battle between the Congress and the BRS. The results of this by-election are expected to significantly influence the trajectory of upcoming urban local body elections.