Grand Alliance finally to come out with first list

With the screening committee of the AICC taking the list of candidates for the Telangana elections to New Delhi and scheduled to meet party chief Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, aspirants are hoping that at least a partial list will be announced, putting an end to the prolonged wait.

It is also said that the party will declare the seats meant for the Grand Alliance partners — the TDP, CPI and Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS) — on Thursday.

Political circles are abuzz following Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's sudden tour to Delhi on Thursday, which is allegedly aimed at gathering support for his anti-BJP alliance at the national level.

It is said that he will be finalising the Grand Alliance candidate list with AICC chief Rahul Gandhi. This is his second visit to New Delhi in a week.

The TJS core committee has warned the Congress that it would unilaterally announce its list if a unified list is not declared at the earliest.

The TJS, founded by Prof Kodandaram, expressed concern over the rumours making rounds on social media that the Congress is ready to allocate only three seats to it. The TJS is hoping for at least 30 seats.

To chalk out the further course of action, the leaders of the Grand Alliance met at the residence of Chada Venkata Reddy, CPI state secretary, here on Wednesday.

"We have decided to hurry but not desert the alliance. The alliance is the only way to fight and put an end to the KCR-rule in Telangana," Prof Kodandaram said after the meeting.

While the TDP and the CPI are exhibiting patience, the TJS — it's the first time at elections — is restless.

The TDP Telangana unit, which has sought 18 seats in the 119 seat Assembly, may get 15, as per the sources.

Out of the 15, 6 seats offered will be in the GHMC area.

The selection process in the Congress also took a lot of time, forcing the alliance partners to delay their campaign. All the aspirants were personally interviewed by the AICC selection committee, which delayed the process by two weeks.