As Munugode votes, race for 2023 begins

Hyderabad : Munugode was never considered a bellwether constituency in Telangana, with the spotlight mostly remaining focussed on the likes of chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s Gajwel and Siddipet among others. But the by-election in this rather small constituency of less than 2. 5 lakh voters is now being seen as the semifinal for the assembly elections coming up in the state next year.

There are many who doubt Munugode’s capacity to set the tone for 2023, but there is no questioning the belief that the party which wins the by-election will have a head start in future polls. The shrill campaign and heavy dose of resources pumped in by all three parties TRS, BJPand Congress is indication enough that no one wants to cede an inch, even as voters line up outside polling booths on Thursday.

Such is the push to win that the parties are even trying to get voters living outside Munugode to return home and vote. Some 40,000 voters, or 20% of the total electorate in the constituency, is believed to be living and working outside and could play a key role in a tightly fought election where the margins are expected to be thin.

Although Telangana has seen at least five by-elections since KCR returned for a second term in 2018, the battle for Munugode could well be one of the costliest given the money splurged on deployment of leaders and workers, liquor and other freebies distributed among the residents.