TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao has announced former MLA Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy as the party candidate for the Munugodu by-election to be held on November 3.
The ruling party is facing a big challenge from the BJP in Munugode, ahead of the state elections next year.
Rao's decision comes following the change of his party name from TRS to Bharat Rashtra Samithi on Wednesday on the occasion of Dasara.
If the party's unanimous resolution sent to the Election Commission of India (ECI) is approved in time, the crucial Munugode bypoll will be the first election the BRS would fight before entering electoral arenas in other states.
Sources said that KCR favoured Kusukuntla's candidature after examining survey reports and opinions of local leaders, cadres and people of the constituency. Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy has been a TRS activist since the party's inception in 2001.
The by-poll in Telangana's Nalgonda region is necessitated as Congress MLA Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy resigned as Munugodu legislator in August. Komatireddy later joined the BJP and is the saffron party candidate.
Komatireddy's exit is considered as a major loss for the Telangana Congress which is struggling to keep pace with the BJP's advance in the state.
Kusukuntla, who was the Munugode MLA in the previous assembly term, lost to Komatireddy in the 2018 elections.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi has last month declared Palvai Sravanthi as the party candidate. Sravanthi is the daughter of (late) Congress veteran and former minister Govardhan Reddy.
Survey reports show that Munugode will be a tough fight between the BJP and the TRS, with Congress having its influence now limited to few pockets.
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