Keen contest on cards for Warangal Lok Sabha bypoll

The bypoll for Warangal (SC) Lok Sabha constituency in Telangana scheduled for November 21 is expected to witness a keen contest as the ruling TRS, opposition Congress and the TDP-BJP combine are drawing up plans to wrest the seat. The bypoll was necessitated by the resignation of incumbent Kadiam Srihari who became the deputy chief minister of Telangana and the TRS is expected to leave no stone unturned to retain the seat. Losing the bye-election would be dubbed as a reflection on the performance of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao's government. The main opposition Congress would like to salvage its prestige by winning the bypoll following its failure in last year's elections. AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh, in-charge of Congress affairs in Telangana, visited Warangal last week and held a meeting with party leaders. Meanwhile, NDA allies TDP and BJP are keen to project themselves as an alternative to the ruling TRS by winning the bypoll. No party has announced its candidate so far for the bye-election. More than 14 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the by-poll.