The ruling Telugu Desam Party and the Congress in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana respectively are witnessing intense competition among aspirants eager to secure the coveted tickets.
Published Mar 07, 2025 | 8:56 PM ⚊ Updated Mar 07, 2025 | 8:56 PM
Synopsis: With nominations deadline looming for the MLC elections under the MLA quota in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, major political parties are racing to finalising their candidates. In Andhra Pradesh, the TDP-led NDA is poised to secure all five seats, while in Telangana, the ruling Congress is similarly expected to dominate.
With just three days left to file nominations for the Member of Legislative Council (MLC) elections under the Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) quota in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, major political parties are finalising their candidates.
The elections, scheduled for 20 March, will fill five seats each in the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Legislative Councils.
Meanwhile, the ruling Telugu Desam Party and the Congress in Andhra Pradesh and Telganga respectively are witnessing intense competition among aspirants eager to secure the coveted tickets.
Following its rout in the 2024 Assembly elections, the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) is unlikely to secure a single seat in Andhra Pradesh, with all five seats expected to go to the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
One of these seats has been allocated to the Jana Sena Party (JSP), with Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan’s brother, Naga Babu, filing his nomination papers on Friday, 7 March.
His nomination puts an end to speculation about his political future, as there were reports suggesting he might enter the Rajya Sabha.
Instead, securing a Legislative Council seat provides him with a safer route to the state cabinet, avoiding the challenges of contesting and winning an Assembly election. With one cabinet berth remaining vacant, Naga Babu is widely expected to be appointed to this position.
The remaining four MLC seats were expected to be distributed between the TDP and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), though this time, the TDP is set to claim all four.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu is carefully considering caste dynamics in finalising candidates.
He is reportedly evaluating names from key communities, including Kammas, Kapus, Backward Classes (BCs), minorities, Kshatriyas, Scheduled Castes (SCs), and Scheduled Tribes (STs).
Among Kammas, former minister Devineni Umamaheswara Rao is a frontrunner, having sacrificed his Mylavaram Assembly seat for Vasanta Venkata Krishna Prasad, a YSRCP defector, ahead of the 2024 elections.
From the Kapu community, Vangaveeti Radhakrishna is a strong contender, given the community’s significant influence in the state.
Similarly, among the BCs, former Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, Budha Venkanna, and Beeda Ravichandra are under consideration.
Among Kshatriyas, SVSN Varma is a leading candidate, having vacated his Pithapuram Assembly seat for JSP chief Pawan Kalyan as part of the TDP-JSP-BJP alliance deal. Naidu had reportedly assured him a Legislative Council seat at the time.
Meanwhile, former ministers KS Jawahar and Peethala Sujatha, both from the SC community, are also in the running, while former MLA Giddi Eeswari is a prominent name among ST candidates.
The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) which had stayed away from the recent Council elections for reserved constituencies, has decided to contest the MLA quota MLC polls, as its current strength in the Legislative Assembly guarantees it one seat. The ruling Congress is likely to secure the remaining four.
Meanwhile, pressure is mounting on Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to allocate one seat to the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM), which has been an ally since the 2023 Assembly elections.
If the Congress also concedes a seat to the Communist Party of India (CPI), its alliance partner, it would be left with only two seats, though it may decide to retain all three.
The Congress is also facing intense competition from aspirants seeking party tickets.
Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan, and Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president B Mahesh Kumar Goud have reportedly shortlisted candidates, but the final decision rests with the party high command in Delhi.
Among Reddy community aspirants, T Jeevan Reddy, Sama Ramamohan Reddy, and T Jayaprakash Reddy are prominent contenders.
For the BCs), former Member of Parliament (MP) Madhu Yashki Goud, Anjan Kumar Yadav, and Sunitha Rao are under consideration.
Ensuring minority representation is also a priority, with Fahim Qureshi, Mohammad Azharuddin, Mohammad Ali Shabber, and Firoz Khan among the names being discussed.
Scheduled Caste (SC) aspirants SA Sampath Kumar and Addanki Dayakar, along with Scheduled Tribe (ST) aspirants Bellaiah Naik and Ramulu Naik, are also in the race.
Meanwhile, the BRS supremo K Chandrasekhar Rao held a meeting with senior leaders and MLAs on Friday to strategise.
Since the Congress’s victory in 2023, he has largely remained in the background, but the party is now actively preparing for the MLC polls.
The BRS is also exploring ways to secure a second seat by persuading discontented Congress MLAs to support its candidate.
The party is considering former Home Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali and tribal leader Satyavathi Rathod for its guaranteed seat.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
