How the Hyderabad municipal elections may change the political scenario in Telangana

How the Hyderabad municipal elections may change the political scenario in Telangana
How the Hyderabad municipal elections may change the political scenario in Telangana
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As the state of Telangana completes a year on June 2 and the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) makes grand plans to rejoice their achievements, there is a larger scenario unfolding that may change the politics of the entire state.The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is the urban planning agency that oversees Hyderabad with its geographical area overlooking the entire city including parts of the jurisdiction of the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) as well.This implies a lot of decision making powers, and the outcome of the elections that may be held soon might decide which party stays and which one leaves. The GHMC has 24 assembly constituencies. TDP held nine of them while MIM held seven. BJP held five and the TRS held the other three.The term of the previous GHMC council ended in December last year. After repeated orders from the Hyderabad high court for the delimitation of wards in preparation for the election, the court finally directed the state to conduct the GHMC elections by December 15, 2015.The GHMC has always been a key hold of the TDP and the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen. (MIM)Hyderabad has never been a stronghold for the TRS. The party which struck little in the northern districts of Telangana, gained political momentum spearheading the Telangana struggle for statehood. The TRS is now working towards getting full control of Hyderabad.The Telangana Chief Minister and TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao has been indirectly hinting at an alliance with the BJP.Read - Will the BJP and the TRS please just form an alliance and end the suspense? However, if an alliance is announced at a crucial time like the one that lies ahead, the party may lose its shot for pushing a few members into the GHMC ranks as it would lose its unofficial alliance with the MIM.The BJP is also faced with a similar situation. It needs the support of the TDP if a few members were to get inducted into the GHMC's ranks. The GHMC elections are also critical in deciding if the Congress will survive in the state or get obliterated in a repeat of 2014 general elections.Despite the recent visit of the Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, the state unit is yet to establish a local leader and this might just cost it the GHMC.However, there is also a chance of survival for the Congress.If the TRS-BJP combine does happen, there is a possibility that the MIM may go back to the way things were before bifurcation, and forge an alliance with the Congress, in turn giving the party a chance to survive in the state.The outcome of the GHMC elections needs to be closely monitored as it will be extremely crucial in shaping the politics of Telangana and sealing the fate of the five major political parties in the state at least till the next general elections.

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