The disqualification of Khairatabad MLA Danam Nagender has opened a fresh political opportunity for the Congress to consolidate its position in Hyderabad, with the prospect of a by-election in the Assembly constituency.

Mr. Nagender had won the Khairatabad seat on a Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) ticket in the 2023 Assembly elections before joining the Congress in 2024 and getting disqualified.

For the Congress, however, the impending by-election is more than a contest for an Assembly seat. This is an opportunity to strengthen its organisational and political presence in Hyderabad, where the BRS has maintained a substantial electoral footprint.

Mr. Nagender has already indicated his interest in contesting the potential by-election. His candidature could also acquire significance in the context of the pending expansion of the State Cabinet. If he wins the by-election, he could be in race for a ministerial berth.

Such an arrangement would potentially address two political requirements for the Congress — giving Hyderabad a strong elected representative in the Cabinet and providing representation to the Munnuru Kapu community.

Currently, the Congress does not have a Minister elected from Hyderabad district. Though Mohammed Azharuddin is a Minister associated with the city, he is a nominated MLC under the Governor’s quota.

The possibility has assumed added significance following the removal of Konda Surekha from the Cabinet. Ms. Surekha, though a Padmashali, filled up the Munnuru Kapu community requirement as her husband Konda Murali belongs to it. But will other strong candidates from Backward Classes (BC) eyeing the Cabinet berth agree is the question, and the Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy will face a challenge.

The developments also come against the backdrop of the Chief Minister’s efforts to expand the Congress’s political base in the city.

Mr. Revanth Reddy had to shoulder much of the responsibility for building the party’s presence in the city, where the Congress was weak in terms of its Assembly strength after the 2023 elections. The party subsequently won the Secunderabad Cantonment and Jubilee Hills by-elections. But the victories brought young, first-time legislators into the Assembly who do not have the influence associated with established city leaders.

Political equations in Hyderabad have also changed since the 2023 Assembly elections. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), which had an electoral understanding with the BRS in the previous Assembly election, is now supporting the Congress government on several issues.

Before joining the BRS, Mr. Nagender was regarded as one of the Congress’s influential leaders in Hyderabad and had considerable organisational and electoral reach in the city with the blessings of late Chief Minister Y.S. Rajashekhar Reddy.

Mr. Nagender joined the BRS to win 2018 and 2023 polls. During his tenure with the BRS government, he did not make it to the Cabinet, with another prominent Hyderabad leader, Talasani Srinivas Yadav, already occupying a ministerial position.

Mr. Nagender’s return to the Congress consequently assumes significance beyond the Khairatabad seat. The immediate challenge, however, is the by-election itself.