New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday announced its first list of candidates for the Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana Assembly elections. The party that had waited for the "inauspicious pitra paksh" period to get over and chose the first day of "Sharadiya Navratri" to release the first set of names that included the chief minister candidate in MP and incumbent CM in Chhattisgarh.
The party announced 144 party candidates for the Madhya Pradesh elections, 30 candidates for Chhattisgarh and 55 for the Telangana Assembly polls slated for November.
While the Chhattisgarh Assembly polls will be held in two phases on November 7 and 17, the Madhya Pradesh elections will be held on November 17. The Telangana Assembly polls will be held on November 30. The results will be declared on December 3.
In Madhya Pradesh, the Congress fielded former chief minister and PCC chief Kamal Nath from his Chhindwara Assembly constituency. Former chief minister Digvijaya Singh's son, Jaivardhan Singh, has been fielded from the Raghogarh seat.
In Chhattisgarh, the party fielded chief minister Bhupesh Baghel from his Patan Assembly constituency and deputy chief minister T.S. Singh Deo from the Ambikapur Assembly seat.
In Telangana, the party fielded state Congress chief Anumala Revanth Reddy from the Kodangal Assembly seat, while CLP leader Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu has been fielded from the Madhira-SC seat.
Mr Reddy is currently the sitting Lok Sabha MP from the Malkajgiri parliamentary constituency. Kota Neelima, a journalist and wife of national spokesperson Pawan Khera, has been fielded from the Sanathnagar Assembly seat. The party has also fielded its sitting Lok Sabha MP N. Uttam Kumar Reddy from the Huzurnagar Assembly constituency. He currently represents the Nalgonda Lok Sabha seat in Telangana.
Challenging his opponents to fight elections without allurements, Mr Reddy dared BRS chief K. Chandrashekhar Rao, saying, “There are two challenges -- one, let's fight the election without giving liquor and cash distribution. Let us take an oath. Come to Martyrs Memorial on October 17 in the afternoon. KCR as BRS president and me as Congress president, let’s take the oath. The second challenge is that 55 lakhs Aasara pensioners should get their pension on the 1st of the month. Can you deposit money with them on November 1?”
In Chhattisgarh, another senior minister Tamradhwaj Sahu has been fielded from the Durg Rural Assembly seat, while Chhattisgarh Assembly Speaker Charan Das Mahant has been fielded from the Sakti Assembly seat.
State Congress chief Deepak Baij has been fielded from the Chitrakoot-ST Assembly seat. He is currently the sitting Lok Sabha MP from Bastar. Former PCC chief and now a minister Mohan Markam has been fielded from the Kondagaon-ST Assembly seat, which he earlier represented.
"The first list of Congress was released today. It is a good list and there is great enthusiasm among people," said the Chhattisgarh CM.
In MP, former minister in the state, Vijay Laxmi Sadho, who has been a former Rajya Sabha member, has been fielded from the Maheshwar-SC Assembly seat.
Former Cabinet minister Jitu Patwari has been fielded from the Rau Assembly constituency. From the Budhni seat that is held by incumbent MP CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan, the Congress has fielded Vikram Masta.
Sanjay Shukla, who shot in the news recently for touching the feet of BJP stalwart Kailash Vijayvargiya, has been pitted against him from Indore 1. Soon after his name was announced, Mr Shukla took a jibe against Mr Vijayvargiya saying that it is a contest between money, muscle power and a social worker.
