Election Commission declares notification for 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana, sparks poll battle

Filing of nominations for Lok Sabha polls in Telangana will begin on Thursday as the Election Commission issued notification kickstarting the election process.

Polling for all the 17 Lok Sabha constituencies in Telangana would be held on May 13 and counting of votes would be taken up on June 4.

Filing of nominations will be accepted from April 18 till April 25 and the last date for withdrawal is April 29.

Telangana BJP chief and Union Minister G Kishan Reddy, the party’s national general secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar and senior leader Etala Rajender are among the saffron party candidates while the Congress fielded, among others, BRS turncoats Danam Nagender and K Kavya.

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi is seeking re-election from the party’s bastion of Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency and the BJP has fielded a political novice but enthusiastic K Madhavi Latha who has begun a spirited campaign.

Former IPS officer RS Praveen Kumar and present MP Nama Nageswar Rao are among others in the poll fray from former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao-led BRS party.

While the BJP and BRS have already announced their candidates for 17 Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, Congress has named its nominees to 14 so far.

The Lok Sabha election is crucial for Congress, BJP and BRS, especially the BRS which is facing an existential crisis of sorts following its unexpected defeat in the Assembly elections held in November last year and desertion of several of its leaders subsequently.

The election is also significant for Chief Minister Revanth Reddy as his position will be consolidated if the party manages to win more seats.

In the 2019 general elections, BRS (then TRS) won nine seats, BJP – four, Congress – three and AIMIM – one seat.