Major political parties are scouting for the known faces to contest the by-election to Warangal parliamentary constituency scheduled on November 21.
The ruling TRS, main opposition Congress, the BJP-TDP combine are in search of the right candidate with winning chances.
If the TRS is determined to retain the seat, which was vacated by Kadiyam Srihari on elevation as the Deputy Chief Minister, the Congress, banking on the support of the distressed farmers, too wants to give a tough fight. The TDP has decided to back its ally BJP in the election while all the 10 Left parties have named an Osmania University academic as its candidate.
But, till this evening, the major parties are still searching for the winnable candidate. The Congress after exhausting all its options of finding a local leader to enter the field, appears to have strongly pitched for the candidature of former Peddapalli MP G. Vivekanand. The party, according to senior leaders, wants to field a leader, who is willing to spend money and is equally known to the cadre.
A top State Congress leader told The Hindu on Tuesday that Dr. Vivekanand has been summoned to New Delhi by AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi to ensure that latter gives his consent. The former MP, who is lying low for some time after his defeat in the 2014 elections, is said to be reluctant to contest.
Talking to The Hindu from Delhi, Dr. Vivekanand said he is not interested to fight the polls and claimed that he is a non-local to the constituency.
But, indications suggest that the high command will prevail up on him to enter the fray.
The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president N. Uttam Kumar Reddy is in Delhi to meet the AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh, and later call on the party chief Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday before announcing the party candidate’s name.
On the other hand, TRS is yet to finalise its candidate, as it is still looking for a winning candidate. Names of Yerrola Srinivas, wife of former Deputy Chief Minister Rajaiah, and daughter-in-law of Kadiyam Srihari, are doing the rounds. The party does not want to take any chance and is banking heavily on the Ministers and party leaders to retain the seat. It has decided to depute Ministers, MPs and MLAs, besides party seniors, in each of the seven Assembly constituencies and also mandals.
The BJP too is in search of a suitable candidate after its leader Parameshwar, who contested the 2014 polls, joined the TRS. The party is examining the names of an NRI doctor Devaiah, and Rajamouli, who are not active politicians.
The 10 Left parties have announced Prof Gali Vinod Kumar, Principal of Osmania University Law College, as its candidate. In a related development, the YSR Congress party has announced its decision to enter the polls.
