Congress May Stay Away From Hyderabad MLC Seat Election

It appears that the Congress has decided to refrain from participating in the election for the Hyderabad Local Authorities' Constituency seat in the Telangana Legislative Council.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) recently announced the schedule for the election for the seat due to the expiration of BRS MLC M S Prabhakar's term on May 1.

The deadline for submitting nominations is April 4, and the scrutiny is scheduled for April 7. Candidates will have until April 9 to withdraw their nominations. Voting will take place on April 23 from 8 AM to 4 PM, and counting of votes will be held on April 25.

Reports suggest that Congress has opted out of the election due to its lack of sufficient strength within the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC). In the GHMC elections held in December 2020, the BRS won 56 seats, the BJP 48 and the AIMIM 44, while the Congress managed to win only two seats.

It is expected that the Congress will support the AIMIM.

For the uninitiated, following shifts in the State's politics after the last Assembly elections when the Congress came to power in Telangana, several corporators from the BRS, including GHMC Mayor Vijayalakshmi, and the BJP have switched their allegiances to the Congress. However, despite these developments, the Congress appears to have decided against contesting the upcoming election, since its numbers are still insufficient to secure a victory.

As per reports, the Congress is still reeling from its recent losses in the MLC elections. The party suffered an unexpected setback in last month's elections for one graduate and two teacher constituency MLC seats, with candidates backed by the Congress defeated in all three constituencies, and doesn't want to risk any more egg on its face.