7 key constituencies for 7th phase of Lok Sabha polls in the Telangana region

After the bifurcation, Andhra Pradesh will be divided into Telangana and Seemandhra. The Lok Sabha elections in the Telangana region will be held on April 30, when 17 constituencies go for the polls. The rest are scheduled to vote on May 7. Here are the top seven constituencies from Telangana to look out for these 2014 elections:

*Malkajgiri: One of the largest Lok Sabha constituencies in the country, this time Malkajgiri is the turf for former civil servants. It majorly has an educated and middle class population. Of those, 70% belong to the Seemandhra region. So, Malkajgiri, as the statistics suggest, is an Andhra terrain in the heart of Telangana. It also houses a lot of Dalit and Christian voters. These are some reasons why it is a favourite among the political parties of Andhra Pradesh.

*Chevella: This constituency is the battleground for one of the richest contenders in the country, Dr Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, whose assets are valued at Rs 528 crore. The rest of the contenders from Chevella are highly educated. Chevella contains a highly developed and urbanised IT corridor and Cyberabad, an IT investment region. One of the most populous constituencies in Telangana, it also has considerable number of people from Seemandhra.

*Khammam: Here, it is a clash of capitalists and a communist leader. It is an important territory because people from different regions of the state are settled here. They are capable of tilting the scales by a huge margin. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has a stronghold in Khammam, but this time it has been challenged by the YSR Congress' P Srinivasa Reddy and the CPI's Andhra Pradesh Secretary K Narayana.

*Nalgonda: With it's rich history and culture, Nalgonda is the home for the Nagarjunasagar dam project and is also referred to as the Red Corridor because of its Maoist insurgencies. The CPI has a strong hold in the area but in the recent past, the Congress has been seen to gain an upper hand and the influence of the TRS has reduced.
 
*Karimnagar: The centre stage for the Telangana movement, this seat is similar to the home turf of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti and its leader K Chandrashekhar Rao. He has won from this seat in 2004, 2006 and again in the 2008 bypolls. But after Sonia Gandhi's rally in 2009 and her promise to create a separate state for Telangana came true, the Congress has had a similar effect on the people. A contest to look out for, will it be the homeland or a recent development?

*Hyderabad: The previous capital of the state of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad now falls under the Telangana region. That is the reason why all the candidates are coming to the city of Nizams to campaign. An IT hub, politicians have promised to develop infrastructure and the IT sector further if elected. The TRS, the TDP, the Congress, and the YRSCP are few of the parties that are contesting along with some independent candidates as well.

*Medak: Again, a city with rich history, Medak is the ground for K Chandrashekhar Rao, president of the TRS, who is fighting from Medak rather than his home turf of Karimnagar. This is also a strong place for the Congress.