Hyderabad: The Khairatabad bypoll has assumed significance as the first Assembly election following the completion of the voter-list revision process in Telangana. The vacancy arose after the Supreme Court dismissed Danam Nagender’s challenge against his disqualification as an MLA.
Under the rules cited in the source, the vacant Assembly seat has to be filled through a by-election within six months. Meanwhile, the voter-list revision process is also moving towards completion.
The revision has brought major changes to the draft electoral roll in Khairatabad. Before the process began, the constituency had 2,93,667 voters, but the draft list contained 1,70,195 names.
Officials excluded 1,23,472 names from the draft list under the Absent, Shifted, Death and Double Vote categories. Of these, 95,082 voters were identified as having permanently shifted from Khairatabad.
Other deletions covered voters identified as deceased, duplicate voters and those classified as absent for other reasons. However, the final composition of the electorate cannot yet be assessed from the draft list alone.
The revision process also resulted in notices being issued to 81,404 voters. The notices related to issues including the absence of linkage with the 2002 list and discrepancies in enumeration forms.
Officials are examining explanations and documents submitted by the affected voters. The number of names restored to the final roll will therefore be important for determining the final electorate.
The final voter list is scheduled for publication on November 9, according to the source. Political parties are closely watching the process ahead of the Khairatabad bypoll.
52.34 percent polling in 2023
In the 2023 Assembly election, Khairatabad had 2,96,036 electors, according to Election Commission of India data. A total of 1,53,730 votes were polled, producing a turnout of 52.34 percent.
Danam Nagender, contesting as the BRS candidate, secured 67,368 votes. Congress candidate P Vijaya Reddy received 45,358 votes, while BJP candidate Chintala Rama Chandra Reddy secured 38,094 votes.
The source also identifies more than 85,000 BC voters, over 75,000 Muslim voters and more than 65,000 SC voters among the constituency’s earlier voter groups. It remains unclear how these figures will change after the revision process.
The Khairatabad bypoll will therefore take place against a substantially altered draft electorate. The final voter list will provide the confirmed picture of the constituency’s electorate.
Khairatabad bypoll and changing voter-list composition
The by-election will be the first election in the constituency after the voter-list revision process concludes. The gap between the draft and final rolls will depend partly on the outcome of the notices issued to 81,404 voters.
The final list will also establish how many voters remain in the constituency after the deletions and subsequent verification. Political parties are expected to assess their election strategies using the final electoral data.
The Supreme Court’s dismissal of Nagender’s petition confirmed the vacancy created by his disqualification. The court upheld the Telangana High Court’s decision, which had disqualified him under the anti-defection law.
The 2023 election figures provide the previous electoral baseline, while the revised rolls will provide the next one. The final list scheduled for November 9 will therefore be a key reference point before the Khairatabad bypoll.