The official announcement about Ali’s candidature is due any moment now and in the meantime, the actor has already kick-started his publicity campaign in east Guntur.
Initially, the actor was expected to contest from Rajahmundry. However, the party has now allotted him to east Guntur. With this, the speculations about him switching parties also come to an end.
Interestingly, Pawan Kalyan and Ali have been good friends for many years now. And although Pawan Kalyan is aware that Ali is going to contest on a Telugu Desam Party ticket, the actor hasn’t complained and wants to keep their friendship separate from politics. Recently, a picture of the actor with YS Jagan Mohan Reddy made the rounds on social media. This caused a widespread assumption that the actor might switch to YSRCP.
“Ali and YS Jagan Mohan Reddy were traveling on the same flight and also on the same bus from the flight to the airport terminal. Someone may have clicked a picture of them and uploaded it on social media, which caused many to speculate about the possibility that the actor might be joining YSRCP. However, that is clearly not the case,” says a source close to the actor.
Besides, Ali has known YS Rajasekhar Reddy’s family for a long time. “Because Ali had lived in the vicinity of YS Rajasekhar Reddy’s residence for a long time, they would meet casually sometimes. That is when he got to know the rest of his family as well. So he spoke to YS Jagan in good spirit, that’s all,” added the source.
There is one more reason that the party has asked the comedian to contest from east Guntur. “Majority people in this area belong to the Muslim community, so it definitely helps Ali,” added the source. When we contacted Ali for his comments, he said, “I respect the party’s decision and am willing to contest from wherever the party would like me to.”
