Fight To The Finish

The Congress party may have some last-minute momentum, but is it enough to defeat two-time chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao's BRS?

- Satish Padmanabhan

ON a cool, rain-drenched morning, Murad Nagar in Old Hyderabad is gearing up for the day to unfold. Shutters open, puja bells ring, incense sticks are lit. The sweet lilt of Dakhani or Hyderabadi Hindi, made popular by comedian Mehmood in films, wafts through the wet air, mixing with the complex aroma of haleem being stirred in vats over slow fire. But no one can say the state elections are just a week away. There are no posters, no giant cutouts and no fluttering flags. Has campaigning in the hi-tech city gone completely digital?

"Yes, to an extent," says Zeeshan, coming out of his shop to see what the fuss was about, to a group of journalists from outside the state trying to gauge the 'hawa'. "We get all updates on WhatsApp and other apps." He shows a message from an important ulema on his phone, urging the Muslims to vote for the Congress in 69 seats and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) in 40-odd of them, listing all the specific seats. "The Muslims are not supporting parties, but seats in this election," he says. But do the voters go by what the ulemas ask them to do? "Well, some do, some don't."

Zeeshan is 34 years old, enterprising and politically aware. He has gained from the meteoric rise of Hyderabad in the past two decades, though he is not directly linked to IT, pharma or the infrastructure industries. He is the managing director of Texas Overseas Educational Consultants, which runs a popular restaurant called Aazebo on TV Tower Road in nearby Malakpet, a gym on the floor below and on the terrace of the building, and a mini AstroTurf cricket ground.

He says there is some resentment among the Muslims against the ruling BRS on its stand on Article 370 and triple talaq, where it went with the Union government, but feels the party has an edge over the Congress.