Hyderabad, June 29 (HS): BJP National President Nitin Nabin on Monday called for intensified grassroots mobilisation and organisational strengthening in Telangana, describing the upcoming Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) elections as an important step in the party's efforts to expand its presence in the state.

Continuing the second day of his three-day visit to Telangana, Nabin held meetings with booth-level workers, students, tribal leaders and senior party functionaries. He also inaugurated district party offices and chaired meetings with BJP MPs, MLAs, MLCs and state office-bearers to review the party's organisational strategy.

Addressing party workers, Nabin said the BJP could come to power in Telangana only through sustained public service, grassroots outreach and organisational strength. He urged every party worker to work towards bringing the BJP to power in the state and said Telangana would witness faster development under a BJP-led double-engine government.

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was working towards the vision of Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat and expressed confidence that the BJP would continue expanding its support base in Telangana.

Referring to Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar, Nabin said the city's future would change under BJP leadership. He urged booth-level workers to strengthen the organisation further and ensure the party's victory in every forthcoming election.

The BJP leadership is focusing on the GHMC elections as its immediate political priority, considering Hyderabad its strongest urban base in Telangana. The civic body covers 24 Assembly constituencies and five Lok Sabha constituencies, making it strategically significant for the party's expansion plans.

In the 2020 GHMC elections, the BJP increased its tally from four to 48 corporators, emerging as the principal challenger to the then ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (now Bharat Rashtra Samithi), which secured 56 seats, while AIMIM won 44 seats.

Although the party could not convert its urban support into significant gains in the 2023 Assembly elections, it improved its performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections by winning eight of Telangana's 17 parliamentary seats.

Nabin said BJP workers had succeeded in creating public support and weakening the BRS politically, but added that the party needed to strengthen its booth-level organisation to translate that support into electoral victories.

Criticising the Congress government, he alleged that it had failed to fulfil the promises made to the people of Telangana.

He also accused the previous BRS government of corruption, particularly in connection with the Kaleshwaram project.

Targeting the Congress and AIMIM, Nabin said the BJP believed in nationalism and development rather than dynastic politics or appeasement. He asserted that while other parties might have political compulsions, the BJP's strength lay in the people of Telangana.

Later, Nabin chaired a meeting of BJP MPs, MLAs, MLCs and state office-bearers, where discussions focused on strengthening the party organisation, expanding public outreach and highlighting the Narendra Modi government's welfare initiatives and development programmes before the people.

The Congress responded by challenging both the BJP and the BRS to debate governance and the implementation of their respective election promises.

Hindusthan Samachar / Indrani Sarkar