Congress sweeps Telangana municipal polls, BRS loses grip, BJP makes dent

Hyderabad: The Congress won 84 of 123 urban local bodies in Telangana’s municipal elections on Friday, February 13, securing 1,537 seats out of 2,996 wards contested, according to results released by the State Election Commission.

The Congress secured almost double what the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) managed, with the K Chandrasekhar Rao-led party winning 25 municipalities with 781 seats. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came in third with six urban bodies and 335 seats, while the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) picked up one municipality.

The Congress also won five out of seven municipal corporations: Mancherial, Ramagundam, Kothagudem, Mahabubnagar and Nalgonda. The BJP took the other two, Nizamabad and Karimnagar, while the BRS bagged none.

In the Mancherial Municipal Corporation, the Congress candidates won 44 wards out of 60. BRS got eight. In the industrial hub of Ramagundam, the Congress took 38 seats to BRS’s 13.

BJP clinches two municipal corporations

The BJP had reason to celebrate too. Karimnagar Municipal Corporation gave them 30 of 66 wards. In Nizamabad Municipal Corporation, they grabbed 28 seats, beating both the Congress and AIMIM. For a party that’s struggled to gain traction in Telangana, controlling two municipal corporation will make the BJP more determined to increase its footprint in the southern state.

Addressing the media, BJP leader Bandi Sanjay Kumar expressed joy over his party securing a majority of the wards in the Karimnagar Municipal Corporation and said that soon, a saffron flag will be hoisted over Hyderabad as well. 

He slammed his critics who said that the Karimnagar MP only talks about Hindutva and ignores development by claiming that the Modi government has spent Rs 1,500 on Karimnagar’s development while “Congress and BRS parties did not give a single penny.”

The Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM won Bhainsa municipality in Nirmal district, taking 12 of 26 wards, while also picking up 70 seats scattered across the state, mostly in areas with substantial Muslim populations.

Dominant victory for Congress in some pockets

In northern districts, the Congress secured Adilabad with 11 seats and performed strongly in Nizamabad district municipalities. In central Telangana, it dominated Nalgonda, Suryapet, and Khammam districts. Southern districts, including Mahabubnagar, Nagarkurnool and Wanaparthy, also saw Congress victories.

The party won all 15 seats in Dharmapuri municipality and all 16 seats in Kosgi. It also secured complete victories in Kollapur (16 seats) and Nagarkurnool (18 seats).

BRS loses grip

The BRS got 27 seats in Sircilla, 15 in Gummadidala and managed to hold onto some ground in Sangareddy and Medak districts. However, the once-dominant party lost municipalities it had controlled since 2014, when Telangana was carved out as a separate state.

Still, a defiant KT Rama Rao (KTR), the party’s working president, said that despite the Congress winning the Telangana municipal polls, the verdict reflects the “growing confidence” of people in the BRS. 

KTR said that while the BRS had then won 122 mayor and chairperson posts out of 130, the current results show the party directly winning over 15 municipalities and emerging as the single-largest party in around 10 to 15 additional municipalities where it holds decisive influence. Overall, he said, “the party views the results across 117 municipalities as positive and politically significant.”

For Congress, Friday’s victories are significant. The party had been out of power in most municipalities since the state’s formation. The Revanth Reddy-led party proved they can win in Telangana again.

Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu said that the municipal election results reflect a public mandate in favour of Congress’s people-centric governance. “People have once again proved that when there is trust and confidence, it naturally turns into public support. Over the past two years, the people’s government has been working tirelessly with the goal of empowerment in key sectors such as education, healthcare, employment and infrastructure, and this victory is a recognition of those efforts,” the Deputy CM said in a release.

The State Election Commission counted votes from 116 municipalities and seven municipal corporations. Of the 2,996 wards contested, results were declared in 2,994, with two seats in Mahabubnagar Municipal Corporation and Aliyabad municipality showing marginal differences in the final tally.

73 pc voters exercised franchise

Over 73 per cent of voters cast their ballots in the municipal elections in 116 municipalities and seven corporations on Wednesday, February 11. Counting of votes was taken up from 8 am on Friday amid tight security.

Notification for elections to municipal chairpersons and vice-chairpersons and corporation mayors and deputy mayors will be issued on Saturday, February 14. Newly elected councillors and corporators will take oath on February 16, and on the same day, they will elect municipal chairpersons and vice-chairpersons and corporation mayors and deputy mayors.