Munugodu: Parties vie to woo newly-weds

Hyderabad: Getting married in Munugodu appears to be a profitable affair these days! The newlywed couples are in high demand as TRS and BJP leaders are vying with each other in offering them gifts ranging from utensils, clothes and cash expecting their support in the byelection. Some of the couples are those who got married recently and registered themselves as voters. They are waiting for the ECI approval as voters.

The local party activists of the pink and saffron parties have so far identified about 2,000 newlywed couples in the constituency. Most of them are residents of Choutuppal, Samsthan Narayanpur, Gattuppal and Munugodu mandals.

The TRS leaders are collecting details of all those who are waiting for Kalyana Laxmi or Shadi Mubarak scheme amount of Rs 1.16 lakh from the state government and are assuring them that they would help in the early release of money under these schemes. The government has not released the money for the past six months.

Pending payment of the money under these schemes, the TRS leaders are presenting 'marriage gifts', which include furniture and house appliances like small fridges, mixers, fans, etc, it is learnt.

The BJP leaders are visiting the houses of the newlyweds and are said to be handing over gifts like silver ornaments to the brides and wrist watches and clothes to the bridegrooms.

A Ravi Kumar from a village in Gattuppal said: "We are being treated as VIPs by both the parties, thanks to the byelection. They say they feel thrilled that leaders are calling on them." However, they would like to keep their cards close to their chest regarding their choice of the candidate.

The TRS and BJP leaders claim that there are about 5,000 such voters in addition to their family members. Joining the marriage celebrations and offering gifts could be the best way to seek their votes.