Congress makes inroads into BRS strongholds in first phase of GP polls, BJP loses ground in its Parliamentary constituencies

Hyderabad

Rural Telangana appears to have decisively swung towards the ruling Congress in the first phase of the Gram Panchayat elections, dealing a blow to the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had maintained a firm grip over several districts for nearly a decade.

Final tallies from multiple districts indicate a clear consolidation of rural support for the Congress, while the BRS struggled to retain its traditional bases.

Khammam, Gadwal, Nalgonda, and Medak districts recorded a strong surge for the Congress, while Karimnagar, Nizamabad and Warangal, once considered the heartland of the BRS, witnessed a significant shift, with the ruling party outperforming its rivals even in Sircilla, the constituency of BRS working president K. T. Rama Rao.

The Congress registered notable victories across Karimnagar, Peddapalli, Mancherial, Asifabad, Nirmal, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Yadadri, Suryapet, Nagarkurnool, Gadwal, Narayanpet, Sangareddy, Hanamkonda, Medak, Warangal, Bhupalpally, Mulugu, Jangaon, Mahabubabad, Vikarabad and Rangareddy districts.