Ground Zero: Hyderabad. Asaduddin Owaisi is the favourite, despite the rabble-rousing antics of his BJP opponent

Mimicking a traditional dance pose, Madhavi Latha K, BJP’s new social media star and its candidate for the Hyderabad Lok Sabha Constituency, draws an imaginary bow, pulling back an imaginary arrow and releases it, sending it soaring through the air towards a masjid during an election rally recently. This video sparked an uproar as soon as it surfaced after the Ramnavami celebrations.

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But Madhavi was not too perturbed. And she has certainly managed to stoke the communal divide in the city. Some voters are certainly impressed.

“She has succeeded in rallying around (the Hindu voters). She is going to give a tough fight to Owaisi. She might even win,” Vijay S, who works at a jewellery store near the historic Charminar, told businessline.

But for her rabble-rousing statements and antics, the election does not seem to generate any heat at ground level. A walk in the bylanes of the Old City, which comprises the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, reveals that the people are largely disinterested in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

“Unlike in the Assembly election, the Lok Sabha election doesn’t seem to generate any interest in the public. The political parties might intensify the election campaign a week ahead of the May 13 polling,” said Mohd. Azam, a bangle store owner.

There is not a single poster, party poster, or any other element of the election campaign seen in the 5-6 km stretch that this reporter travelled on Saturday.

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Of all the 17 Lok Sabha constituencies in Telangana, the Hyderabad constituency is attracting the most eyeballs. An MIM (Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen) bastion for 40 years, this constituency has become the talk of the town as BJP’s candidate Madhavi Latha is hogging the social media limelight courtesy of her controversial video.

In the 2019 elections, Asaduddin Owaisi trounced the BJP candidate with a huge margin of 2.82 lakh.

In the 2023 elections to the Assembly, MIM candidates won six out of the seven constituencies, while the BJP won in one constituency. It won with comfortable majorities in all six constituencies, barring Yakutpura, where its candidate scaped through with just 878 votes. The BJP, which stood second only in two constituencies in the Assembly elections only five months ago, is pinning hopes on Goshamahal assembly constituency, a stronghold of the far-right leader Raja Singh.

Though he is busy with the party’s campaign in the North, Owaisi spends considerable time and energy on the constituency, not leaving anything to chance.

The BJP is well aware of the ground realities in the MIM stronghold. It knows quite well that it is not an easy task to unseat Owaisi on his home turf. It is mobilising all possible support for Madhavi Latha.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted early this month to praise her for making “very solid points” in an ‘Aap Ki Adalat’ episode. Sharing the link to the episode on his ‘X’ wall, he said she put her arguments with logic and passion. 

Besides, it is lining up some top leaders, including Home Minister Amit Shah, in the next few days to prop up her chances.

Madhavi, a promoter of Virinchi Hospitals, started the groundwork in the constituency quite early, months before her party declared her as its candidate.

Random conversations with people on the road and in the shops reflect no real challenge to Owaisi in the constituency, which elected his father six times and him four times.

“I don’t see any problem for him in the upcoming election. Madhavi Latha is being projected as the far-right leader of BJP in Telangana. The two communities are living in harmony here. You see a lot of interdependency in day-to-day life,” political analyst and senior journalist K Venkateswarlu, who has been closely watching the developments in the constituency for over 40 years, said.

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