Former President of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) and senior Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra in Telangana did not have a significant impact in the Assembly constituencies it visited. The yatra only managed to win half of the constituencies it covered. While many Congress leaders were confident that the yatra would have a major influence on the elections, this was only seen in rural areas of the state.
Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra took place in late October and early November 2022. It entered Telangana through Raichur in Karnataka and traveled through Mahbubnagar district in South Telangana. The yatra went through around 17-18 Assembly constituencies and seven parliamentary constituencies in the state. However, the results from these constituencies were mixed, leading to a divide between urban and rural areas. The Congress party performed well in the rural constituencies of Central and South Telangana, including Medak, Nalgonda, and Mahbubnagar districts.
In the recently announced Assembly election results, the Congress party swept the southern part of Telangana, particularly Mahbubnagar district. Several constituencies where the yatra passed through, such as Jadcherla, Mahbubnagar, Makthal, Shadnagar, Devarkadra, and Andole, were won by Congress candidates. However, the party did not make significant gains in constituencies around Hyderabad and its surrounding areas. For example, Jagga Reddy, the sitting MLA from Sangareddy, lost to a candidate from Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).
In constituencies like Goshamahal, Bahadurpura, Kukatpally, Patancheru, Serlingampally, Rajendranagar, and Nampally, where the yatra passed through, the Congress party was unable to secure victory. In some cases, the party even ranked third or second in these constituencies.
Overall, while the Bharat Jodo Yatra had an impact in rural areas of Telangana, it did not achieve the desired results in urban constituencies, including those near Hyderabad.
