By IANS,
Hyderabad : Celebrations broke out in the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) camp Wednesday after its victory in the by-elections to seven assembly seats, six of them in the Telangana region.
TRS leaders and workers celebrated the victory on four of the five seats it contested with firecrackers and sweets at Telangana Bhavan, the party headquarters here.
N. Janardhan Reddy, an independent supported by TRS, was also elected.
However, the TRS defeat in Mahabubnagar by a narrow margin of 1,865 votes at the hands of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spoiled the celebrations.
The result also sparked off a war of words between the two parties, with TRS accusing BJP of splitting pro-Telangana votes.
Mahabubnagar assembly segment falls under Mahabubnagar Lok Sabha constituency, represented by TRS chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao.
The party fielded a Muslim candidate. The BJP, which did not contest other seats, entered the fray in Mahabubnagar, ignoring the appeals by TRS and others fighting for separate Telangana state.
“It is very unfortunate that the BJP did not heed to our appeal and spoiled the bright chances of a minority candidate,” said former MP of TRS Vinod Kumar.
BJP leaders defended their stand and claimed that only a national party can ensure formation of Telangana state.
The victory is expected to boost the morale of TRS, which is planning to revive Telangana agitation next month.