Lok Sabha elections: BJP in search of strong candidates for 7-8 seats

HYDERABAD: The Telangana BJP, which has completed the preliminary exercise on selection of some candidates for the Lok Sabha polls in the state, is yet to find strong candidates for about seven to eight seats. The party is expecting some leaders from other parties like Congress and TRS to join the Bharatiya Janata Party for a ticket if they fail to get nominated by their respective parties.


The BJP state election committee met on Thursday night and short-listed two to three names for each LS constituency. The list of candidates will be handed over to party national leadership on Saturday for finalising the names. The BJP parliamentary board is likely to meet on Saturday morning and is expected to clear some names by the evening.

Party sources said the party could not find strong candidates for seats such as Hyderabad, Medak, Adilabad, Warangal, Nalgonda, Zaheerabad, Mahbubabad, Khammam and Mahbubnagar. “Though some names were considered tentatively, if party finds any other strong candidates who can give tough fight, they will be given a chance,” a member of BJP’s state election committee told TOI.

The party leaders said Modi’s charisma and party’s strength will benefit the party to win at least half a dozen seats in Telangana.

The names shortlisted include BJP state president K Laxman, former MLA G Kishan Reddy and sitting MP Bandaru Dattatreya, all seeking the Secunderabad seat. Interestingly, Goshamahal MLA T Raja Singh’s name too is in the reckoning for either the Hyderabad or Zaheerabad seat, though he himself is said to be reluctant to contest in the Lok Sabha.

The party has proposed two names, that of MLC N Ramchander Rao and former MLA NVSS Prabhakar for the Chevella seat, B Janardhan Reddy and Nanda Kumar Yadav, Arvind Dharmapuri and P Sadananda Reddy for Nizamabad. The other names are Bangaru Shruthi and Rajini (Nagarkurnool), Payal Shankar and P Rama Devi (Adilabad), Bandi Samjay, D Pradeep Kumar and Ramakrishna Reddy (Karimnagar), Goli Madhusudhan Reddy and Garlpati Jithender (Nalgonda), Shanti Kumari (Mahbubnagar), Ashok and Chinta Sambamurthy (Warangal) and Raghunandan Rao and Karunakar Reddy (Medak).