Khairtabad by-election sets stage for intense political battle among major parties

Main Contest

Major political parties are preparing for a tough fight in the upcoming Khairtabad assembly by-election, viewing it as a semi-final before the general assembly polls. The seat became vacant after a gazette notification was issued by assembly secretary Rendla Tirupati, stating that Danam Nagender's disqualification takes effect from April 23, 2024, following a recent Telangana High Court ruling. The ruling Congress aims to win to prove its strength in Hyderabad after winning two previous by-elections in the Greater area. The Bharat Rashtra Samithi wants to win back the seat it held previously to send a strong signal across the state, while the Bharatiya Janata Party hopes a win will boost its grassroots workers.

Voter List and Party Plans

This is the first election in the state held after the Special Summary Revision of voter lists. Out of 2,93,667 voters in the constituency as of June 10, 2026, over 1.23 million or 1,23,472 votes were removed under categories like absent, shifted, dead, or duplicate. Out of the remaining 1,70,195 votes, only 88,792 are fully verified, while notices were issued to 81,403 people. In the 2023 assembly elections, BRS candidate Danam Nagender won with 63,068 votes, while BJP candidate Chintala Ramachandra Reddy got 34,666 and Congress candidate Vijayareddy secured 33,549 votes. Danam later joined Congress and contested the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Secunderabad, where BJP leader Kishan Reddy won. Meanwhile, Oneindia Telugu reports that Jana Sena has also decided to contest the Khairtabad by-election alone to test its own strength without alliances, with plans to field a prominent film actor close to Pawan Kalyan, while other regional groups are also weighing their entry.

Context

By-elections in high-profile urban seats like Khairtabad often act as an early indicator of shifting public mood between major state-level rivals. Party leaders use these localized contests to test campaign strategies and energize local cadres ahead of broader civic or state polls. The ongoing voter list cleaning process also directly impacts how political campaigns target specific pockets of voters.