Telangana Polls: In ‘Mini India’ Malkajgiri, Diversity Likely to Split Votes in Tough Three-pronged Contest – News18

Called ‘Mini India’ because of its diversity, Malkajgiri in Telangana’s Medchal-Malkajgiri district is India’s largest assembly constituency by the number of voters. In 2018, there were approximately 4 lakh voters while this time it is estimated to be 5 lakh.

Apart from a sizeable north Indian population, many from Tamil Nadu and Kerala have also settled in Malkajgiri. Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and BJP national president JP Nadda had recently held public meetings here.

“Most of the residents here have decided to vote for the BJP. We want someone who will work for the development of the country. Also, most of them are upper caste Hindus and they support the BJP. Our candidate is an educated person and we trust he can bring change. We voted for the Congress and BRS in the past and we are not happy,” said a shopkeeper in Goutham Nagar.

The politics

Ramchander Rao, Malkajgiri’s BJP candidate, is the president of the city unit. A lawyer by profession, he was an MLC from 2015 to 2021.

The assembly constituency was in the news in August after sitting BRS MLA Mynampally Hanumantha Rao lashed out at health minister Harish Rao for creating hurdles in the way of his son Rohith Reddy getting a ticket from Medak constituency.

Though his remarks met retaliation from the BRS, he still got the party ticket to contest the polls from Malkajgiri. The MLA, however, was adamant about his son’s ticket and jumped ship to the Congress, which gave tickets to both.

The BRS then fielded Marri Rajashekar Reddy from the constituency, who had unsuccessfully contested Lok Sabha polls earlier. He is the son-in-law of state labour minister Malla Reddy, who is well-known for his chain of educational institutes and is one of the richest politicians in Telangana.

Interestingly, Telangana Congress president Revanth Reddy is the MP from Malkajgiri.

More voices

“There are 75 percent north Indians in Malkajgiri. In 2018, there were 60,000 ex-servicemen votes here. This year, the number is estimated to be 75,000. This year, the BJP is going to win this segment. Hanumantha Rao has joined the Congress so those who would have voted for the BRS will vote for the Congress this time. This will bring down BRS votes, which will work in favour of the BJP. Leaders like Nirmala Sitharaman and JP Nadda have held public meetings here. We are positive that the BJP will clinch at least 25 seats in the state,” said Dharmendra Kumar Singh, a BJP booth manager getting ready for a door-to-door campaign in Goutham Nagar.

There are three army centres in and around Malkajgiri – Ordnance Corps centre, Military College of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering, and Hakimpet air force station. This is the reason why people from across the country have come here and many have made Hyderabad their home.

Kendriya Vidyalayas and Sainik schools have also made it easy for the army personnel to settle for the education of their children. Many have bought homes and have been residing here for the past 25 years. In Goutham Nagar, there are a number of railway employees as the Railway Nilayam is located nearby.

Farther away from Goutham Nagar, however, an auto driver said his vote will go to the BRS. “No one is better than KCR. It’s wiser to vote for local parties. In national parties, the decision making process is cumbersome. They have to take approvals from multiple panels before decisions are made for the state. Why should others make decisions for my state?” he asked.

The well-tended houses of army personnel give way to slums as you move towards Moula Ali area. Pre-poll scenes are more evident here as security personnel, who have set up a post near Kaman, are regularly checking vehicles for illegal cash. Campaign vehicles of the BRS and Congress are seen making several trips.

“It does not matter that Hanumantha Rao jumped ship to the Congress. He has been an accessible MLA and did a lot of work here. There is an RTC colony behind, which is a hilly area that did not have good roads. The MLA laid out concrete roads, installed streetlights and worked towards other civic issues. Before this, an area measuring 1,000 square yards cost Rs 5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh. Now, the cost has gone up to Rs 30 lakh due to the makeover,” said a voter on condition of anonymity.

“We have never met the BRS candidate (Marri Rajashekar Reddy). Their idea is to buy votes as they are very rich. It is true that some young voters will be swayed by money, but older ones will only vote for the people who bring development. Hanumantha Rao is well-respected here,” the voter added.