Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will review the panel’s list and may narrow it further before forwarding it to the party high command for approval.
Published Oct 06, 2025 | 4:10 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 06, 2025 | 4:10 PM
V Naveen Yadav, Bonthu Rammohan and M Anjan Kumar Yadav are the frontrunners.
Synopsis: The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee shortlisted three Backward Classes aspirants for the upcoming by-election to the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency. A three-member committee of ministers held consultations with local leaders and cadres before recommending the names to AICC Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan and TPCC chief B Mahesh Kumar Goud.
The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) has shortlisted three Backward Classes (BC) aspirants for the upcoming by-election to the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency in Hyderabad.
The move is in line with the party’s renewed focus on social justice and follows its recent legislative and administrative push to enhance BC reservations in local bodies. The by-election for the Jubilee Hills Assembly seat was necessitated by the sudden demise of BRS MLA Maganti Gopinath on 8 June, after a heart attack at the age of 63.
Gopinath, a three-time MLA from the upscale Hyderabad constituency, had won the seat in the 2023 Assembly elections on a BRS ticket. The Election Commission is expected to announce the poll schedule soon, along with the Bihar Assembly elections in October-November.
A three-member committee of ministers — Ponnam Prabhakar, Tummala Nageswara Rao, and Gaddam Vivek Venkataswamy — held consultations with local leaders and cadres over three days before recommending the names to All India Congress Committee (AICC) Telangana in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan and TPCC chief B Mahesh Kumar Goud.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy will review the panel’s list in a day or two and may narrow it further before forwarding it to the party high command for approval. The AICC is expected to announce the Congress nominee within a week. All shortlisted aspirants belong to the BC category, underlining the party’s focus on the community’s strong presence in Jubilee Hills.
Of the approximately 3.93 lakh voters in the constituency, nearly 1.4 lakh belong to various BC sub-groups such as Munnuru Kapu, Yadav, Mudiraj, Padmashali, Vaddera, Goud, Vishwa Brahmana, Kammari and Rajaka.
The selection reflects Congress’s show of its commitment to social justice. It claims it had the empowerment of BCs when it issued a Government Order (GO) and passed Assembly bills that raised BC reservations in local bodies to 42 percent.
V Naveen Yadav, a frontrunner for the ticket, is a local leader with prior electoral experience. He contested the 2014 Assembly elections on an AIMIM ticket, finishing second, and as an independent in 2018, finishing third. He joined the Congress in November 2023 and is seen as a youth face with a strong base in the constituency.
Another contender is Bonthu Rammohan, former Mayor of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) from 2016 to 2021. A Munnuru Kapu by community, he quit the BRS and joined Congress in February 2024. He brings organisational experience and family ties with Yadava groups, which could help consolidate support.
Former MP M Anjan Kumar Yadav is also in the race. A two-time Lok Sabha member from Secunderabad (2004 and 2009), he represents the Yadava community.
However, his prospects appear uncertain as the party has already elevated his son, M Anil Kumar Yadav, to the Rajya Sabha in April 2024. All three contenders are financially strong and have significant local influence in the affluent Jubilee Hills area.
The BRS has already announced Maganti Sunitha Gopinath, widow of the late MLA, as its candidate on 26 September. BRS chief K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) said the decision was made to honour Gopinath’s legacy, his service to the party, and the sentiments of the local cadre. Sunitha met BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao after the announcement to convey her gratitude.
The BJP has formed a three-member screening committee led by Telangana BJP President N Ramchander Rao to identify potential candidates. The panel includes former MLA MDharma Rao, former MP A Pothuganti Ramulu, and senior leader advocate Komala Anjaneyulu.
The committee will consult party leaders before submitting its recommendations to the national leadership, with a focus on winnability in this high-profile urban constituency.
The bypoll is shaping up as a key test for Congress’s BC outreach in Hyderabad’s elite enclave, where BCs, upper castes, and urban professionals together define the electoral landscape.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
