Even as the Congress was dropping hints of its willingness to enter into a seat-sharing agreement with it, Telangana Rashtra Samiti dashed its hopes by releasing the first list of its 69 Assembly candidates on Friday. The party has renominated all the 17 sitting legislators while fielding all the prominent leaders who had crossed over from the Telugu Desam Party, Congress and other parties.
Party president K Chandrashekar Rao, who will be contesting from Gajwel in Medak district said that the remaining list of 50 Assembly candidates and all the 17 lok Sabha candidates will also released soon. April 9 is the last date for filing nomination for the general elections in Telangana.
First list includes two family members of KCR. His son K Taraka Rama Rao will be seeking re-election from Sircilla in Karimnagar district and his nephew T Harish Rao will be re-entering the fray from Siddipet in Medak district. KCR’s daughter Kavita is largely believed to be contesting for the lok Sabha either from Nizamabad or Medak. KCR is contesting the Assembly elections for the first time since he launched the TRS in 2001 to revive the dormant movement for Telangana State. Earlier, he was elected to the lok Sabha in 2004 and 2009 from Karimnagar and Mahbubnagar constituencies. It was not clear as yet whether he will also be entering the lok Sabha election fray.
The first list of TRS has an overwhelming number of leaders who had migrated from the TDP and the Congress either earlier or recently.MlAs who have been re-nominated include T Rajaiah (Station Ghanpur), Pocharam Srinivas Reddy (Banswada), Jogu Ramanna (Adilabad), K Harishwar Reddy (Parigi), G Nagesh (Both), Vengopal Chary (Mudhole) Ch Ramesh Babu (Vemulawada), Jaipal Yadav (Kalwakurti).Former Minister Konda Surekha, who left Congress to join YSR Congress and recently entered TRS triggering a storm of protestors has also found a place in the candidates. She will be contesting from Warangal East constituency. Her admission in TRS had evoked sharp criticism from the party leaders as well as the Telangana Joint Action Committee who termed Konda Surekha a ‘traitor of Telangana’ as she had opposed Telangana State.
Similarly another known anti Telangana leader Mahindar Reddy has been fielded from Tandur in Ranga Reddy district.