BJP releases first list of candidates for Telangana assembly elections
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday released its first list of 52 candidates for the upcoming assembly elections in Telangana. Prominent on the list are three sitting MPs, Soyam Bapu Rao, who will contest from Boath, Arvind Dharmapuri (Koratla), and Bandi Sanjay Kumar (Karimnagar). T Raja Singh, whose suspension for making controversial remarks against Prophet Muhammad was revoked, has been fielded from Goshamahal.
Check out list of BJP's Telangana candidates
Prominent BJP leaders, women candidates on the list
BJP leader and former state Finance Minister Rajender has been fielded from two constituencies—Huzurabad and Gajwel. He will be contesting against the Telangana Chief Minister and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) chief K Chandrashekar Rao in Gajwel. The list also features several prominent women candidates, including Annapurnamma, for the Balkonda seat. BJP stalwart Chandupatla Janga Reddy's daughter-in-law, Chandupatla Keerthi Reddy, will contest from Bhupalapalli.
34 candidates from reserved categories: Report
According to The New Indian Express, the first list of BJP candidates comprises 20 candidates from backward classes, 14 from the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST), 14 from the Reddy community, and six from the Velama community. The party has also reportedly decided to allow the Jana Sena Party (JSP) to contest in 12 assembly constituencies as part of a pre-poll alliance.
BJP reinstates Raja ahead of list publication
The BJP on Sunday reinstated Goshamahal MLA Raja Singh in the lead-up to the Telangana elections, per The Indian Express. He was suspended following his arrest in August last year for making comments deemed "blasphemous" against Prophet Muhammad. These comments were made in response to the police allowing comedian Munawar Faruqui permission to perform in the city in August 2022.
