The Congress party on Friday released its first list of Lok Sabha candidates with eight nominees who would be contesting in Telangana. The notable ones who got tickets include Revanth Reddy, Ponnam Prabhakar and Konda Vishweshwar Reddy.
Telangana Congress working presidents Revanth Reddy and Ponnam Prabhakar, who lost the Assembly elections from Kodangal and Karimnagar constituency in the 2018 state elections, got the opportunity to try their luck in the Lok Sabha polls.
While Revanth will be contesting from Malkajgiri, Ponnam Prabhakar got the Karimnagar seat which he had been heavily bargaining for. Sitting MP, Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, who recently joined the Congress after quitting the TRS, got the Chevella ticket. Vishweshwar Reddy is likely to have a tight contest from Karthik Reddy, son of former minister Sabitha Indra Reddy, from the TRS.
Karthik joined the TRS party after he was denied the seat from Chevella by the Congress.
The list of aspirants who got tickets are: Adilabad (ST)- Ramesh Rathod; Pedapalle (SC)- A Chandra Sekhar; Karimnagar- Ponnam Prabhakar; Zahirabad- K Madan Mohan; Medak- Gali Anil Kumar; Malkajgiri- A Revanth Reddy; Chevella- Konda Vishweshwar Reddy; Mahabubabad- Porika Balram Naik.
The Congress has abandoned the Prajakutami alliance with Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS), Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Communist Party of India (CPI) after the recent Assembly poll debacle. Though the TJS is contesting independently from four constituencies including Malkajgiri, Nizamabad and Karimnagar they have offered support to campaign for the Congress in other constituencies.
Meanwhile, the series of defections continue in Telangana Congress. After Palair MLA K Upender Reddy, another MLA from LB Nagar, D Sudhakar Reddy is likely to join the ruling TRS party, bringing down the Congress tally to 12 seats from 19. With this, the Congress faces the threat of losing the official status of the Opposition. The Congress had won 19 seats from 119 constituencies in the assembly polls held recently.