Cong to Declare Candidates For 2 RS Seats on Wednesday, CM to Leave For Delhi

Hyderabad: The Congress will finalise its candidates for the two Rajya Sabha seats from Telangana on Wednesday, a day ahead of the March 5 deadline for filing nominations. Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and TPCC chief B Mahesh Kumar Goud will leave for Delhi on Wednesday to hold discussions with AICC leaders on the selection of candidates, sources said.

The TPCC leadership has prepared a list of 16 probables for the two seats amid indications that the party high command may opt for Telangana-native candidates. Speculation persists that the leadership has decided to renominate party leader and Supreme Court senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi for one of the seats. If so, the party would have to choose one candidate from the remaining 16 aspirants for the second seat.

According to party sources, the list of probables includes aspirants from Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and general communities.

Those in consideration include the Chief Minister’s adviser Vem Narender Reddy, Khairatabad former DCC president C. Rohin Reddy, former MP T. Subbarami Reddy, and CWC special invitee Challa Vamshi Chand Reddy from the Reddy community.

From the Backward Classes community, former MP V. Hanumantha Rao is in the race. Under the minorities, Fahim Qureshi, vice-chairman and president of the Telangana Minorities Residential Educational Institutions Society, is in contention.

From the Scheduled Castes community, Alampur former MLA S.A. Sampat Kumar and from the Scheduled Tribes community Tejavath Bellaiah Naik Tejavath, chairman of the S Cooperative Finance Development Corporation (TRICOR), are among those being considered.