Hyderabad: The Jubilee Hills by-election in Telangana is shaping up to be a significant political event, as exit polls indicate a clear lead for the Congress over its rivals, BJP and BRS.
The main contenders in this by-election are Congress’s Naveen Yadav, BRS’s Mangati Sunita Gopinath, and BJP’s Deepak Reddy. Mangati Sunita was nominated by BRS as she is the wife of Mangati Gopinath, the late legislator who had won this seat in 2023.
Four prominent exit polls — Naganna, State Polls, Chanakya Strategy, and People’s Pulse — show Congress holding the upper hand with vote shares ranging from 46% to 48.2%, followed by BRS at 41% to 42.1%, and BJP trailing with a much lower share, ranging between 6% and 8%.
For Congress leader Revanth Reddy, winning this seat is a matter of prestige and political capital, especially as AIMIM or Asaduddin Owaisi did not field any candidate, consolidating Muslim votes in favour of Congress.
Naveen Yadav, who previously contested this seat twice — once as an AIMIM candidate and later as an independent — has now been entrusted with full responsibility by Congress, with all exit polls signalling his likely victory.
This by-election is considered politically crucial following the recent defeat of NSUI by ABVP in student elections, making the Jubilee Hills contest a key indicator of party strength.