KARIMNAGAR, JUNE 04, 2024: BJP contestant from Karimnagar parliament constituency and sitting MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar has created a history by winning with a record majority of 2, 25, 209 votes against his nearest rival and Congress contestant Velichala Rajender Rao.
The BJP candidate polled 5,85,116 votes (45 percent), the Congress candidate polled 3,59,907 votes (27.41 per cent0 and the BRS candidate B Vinod Kumar secured 2,82,163 votes (21.49 percent). Bandi Sanjay Kumar has broken the record created by BRS founder president K Chandrashekhar Rao, who secured 2,01,581 votes in 2006 by-elections during the statehood movement and BRS candidate B Vinod Kumar, who secured 2,05,007 votes in 2014 elections.
Ever since the counting began at SRR college on Tuesday, Mr Bandi Sanjay Kumar continued his winning streak from the postal ballot votes to the last round of counting of votes and set a record in the Karimnagar parliament constituency by securing a whopping lead of over 2.25 lakh votes.
Though, the BJP has no representation in all the seven assembly segments of the parliament constituency, Bandi Sanjay Kumar secured majority in all six assembly segments barring Sircilla represented by BRS working president K Taraka Rama Rao. The Congress party had won from Husnabad, Choppadandi, Vemulawada and Manakondur assembly segments in the last assembly elections, but could not fare well in the parliament to help the Congress contestant.
The BRS had won from Karimnagar, Huzurabad and Sircilla assembly segments in the last assembly elections. Barring Sircilla assembly segment represented by K Taraka Rama Rao, the BJP had swept in Huzurabad and Karimnagar assembly segments by securing leads in the parliament elections.
The BJP candidate had played the Hindutva card with the distribution of photos of Ayodhya Ram mandir inauguration and ‘thalambralu’ to each and every household in the constituency. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaign in Vemulawada assembly segment had helped the BJP in the elections.
The Congress party had delayed in the announcement of the official candidate in the elections. The party announced the candidature of Velichala Rajender Rao only on the last date of filing of nominations. He could not campaign extensively as there were only 15-days’ time for electioneering. Besides, the cancellation of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy meeting in Karimnagar had proved dearly for the party candidate.
Surprisingly, BRS candidate B Vinod Kumar, who campaigned rigorously was confined to third position in the elections in spite of electioneering by former Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao and former Minister K Taraka Rama Rao. Majority of BRS votes were diverted to the BJP in this elections following the poor coordination by the Congress party leadership in the electioneering.
