The fierce three-cornered battle between TRS, BJP and Congress to win the Munugode bypoll has become a virtual semifinal before the assembly elections next year. The surprise resignation of Congress’s Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy in August and his defection to BJP necessitated the bypoll, slated for November 3.
The stakes have been made higher by a spirited attempt by all sides to woo the Reddy vote which had shown signs of moving from Congress to TRS. Congress also holds the Lok Sabha seat in which Munugode falls but the party is hobbled by its weakening base in the state. The departure of Raj Gopal who has deep pockets and has been the constituency’s legislator for a long time coupled with the seemingly unlimited resources that appear to be at the disposal of TRS and BJP have made it a high voltage contest.
Not surprisingly, cash, liquor and other inducements are reportedly flowing freely into the area with the Election Commission not being able to do much. The Telangana police case against three persons for allegedly attempting to lure TRS legislators into BJP suggests the next one year will see several desertions and drama across parties.
The defection of TRS rebels and prominent Congress leaders have helped BJP by being able to showcase a credible array of second rung leaders. For Congress, which has all but ceded the opposition space to BJP, a defeat in Munugode could accelerate the exodus of cadre and leaders.
But what BJP may really need now is one leader who can don the mantle of a direct challenger to K Chandrashekar Rao who enjoys a formidable reputation as the prominent leader of the Telangana statehood movement.
Read also: Telangana – Punters bet big on Munugode bypoll, Rs 1,000 crore at stake
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