Azhar faces tough fight in Jubilee Hills

Shubhadeep Choudhury

Hyderabad, November 26

Mohammed Azharuddin is facing a tough battle in the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency in Hyderabad from where he is contesting on Congress ticket.

The former ace batsman claimed his victory was a certainty. “Once I become victorious, I will like to devote time to solve the problems of my constituency,” he said.

Asked how contesting from an Assembly constituency in his native Hyderabad is different from fighting from the Lok Sabha seat of Moradabad, Azhar said Moradabad too was home. He, however, added that contesting from Hyderabad is a very special experience for him.

Excitement is palpable among the Congress workers who accompany Azhar during campaigning. However, the Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM can scuttle Azhar’s chances.

MR Farazuddin, the AIMIM candidate, is expected to cut into Azharuddin’s Muslim votes and help the cause of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) candidate M Gopinath seeking re-election from the seat.

Congress leaders admitted that Azharuddin is also facing challenge from within the party. Vishnubardhan Reddy, son of veteran Congress leader P Janardhan Reddy, was an aspirant for the Jubilee Hills seat. However, his request for ticket for the seat was turned down by the party and Azharuddin was fielded from the constituency. A dejected Reddy has now joined the BRS and may topple Azharuddin’s applecart.