CM, Botsa in Delhi over MLC elections

The Congress party is likely to announce the names of five candidates for the MLC elections in MLA's quota on Saturday.

According to sources, the Congress High Command has shortlisted 20 out of nearly 200 applications that it received from different candidates. While a majority of candidates wanted to get elected under MLAs' quota, the rest claimed that they were eligible to be nominated by the Governor. The strong contenders include former Speaker KR Suresh Reddy, former ministers Mohammad Ali Shabbir and K Vidyadhar Rao, former MP PV Rajeshwar Rao and former MLAs Mallu Ravi and Ghata Murali Krishna. Former GHMC Mayor Banda Karthika Reddy and former IAS officer C Umamalleswara Rao are also aspiring to get MLC ticket.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha and PCC President Botsa Satyanarayana reached Delhi on Friday to finalise the candidates. They held meetings with senior leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ahmed Patel and other senior leaders. They are likely to submit the list of shortlisted candidates to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who will take a final decision in this regard.