UP Congress chief Raj Babbar shifts to Fatehpur Sikri

The Congress on Saturday shifted party’s Uttar Pradesh unit chief Raj Babbar from Moradabad Lok Sabha seat to Fatehpur Sikri and fielded one-time Mayawati confidante Naseemuddin Siddiqui from Bijnor.

The Congress announced its seventh list of 34 candidates across seven states on Saturday fielding former Union minister Renuka Chowdhury from Khammam Lok Sabha seat in Telangana.

It also announced leaving the Srinagar seat in J&K for former chief minister Farooq Abdullah.

In Tamil Nadu, the Congress fielded two former state unit chiefs EVKS Elangovan and Su Thirunnavukkarasar from Theni and Tiruchirapalli seats respectively.

AICC Secretaries Manickam Tagore, A Chellakumar and K Jayakumar will be in the fray from Virudhunagar, Krishnagiri a Tiruvallur Lok Sabha seats respectively.

Tagore is considered to be a giant-killer having defeated MDMK chief Vaiko in the 2009 elections.

In Karur, Congress has fielded A Jothimani, who began her political career in the Youth Congress, against Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai.

In Kanyakumari, businessman-politician H Vasanthkumar will be the Congress candidate to take on Union minister and sitting BJP member Pon Radhakrishnan.

Former Puducherry chief minister V Vaithilingam will contest the lone Lok Sabha seat from the Union territory.

In Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad, Congress has fielded popular Urdu poet Imran Pratapgarhi and shifted actor-politician Raj Babbar to Fatehpur Sikri.

Congress chose to opt for Pratapgarhi as its candidate for Moradabad as the election usually assumes communal overtones in western Uttar Pradesh.

In Tripura, Congress has fielded Pragya Deb Barman, the elder sister of state unit chief Pradyot Deb Barman, from Tripura East.

The party hopes to get the support of the indigenous people of the state who were incensed by the BJP’s push for the Citizenship Amendment bill earlier this year.

Pragya, a scion of the royal family of Tripura, is also the state convenor of INTACH.

From Tripura West, the Congress has fielded Subal Bhowmik, who quit the BJP earlier this week to join the grand old party.

Congress veteran Karan Singh's son Vikramaditya Singh will contest against BJP leader and Union Minister Jitendra Singh from Udhampur in Jammu & Kashmir.

Senior Congress leader Praveen Aron will be in the fray from Bareilly, while Bal Kunwar Patel will test his electoral fortunes from Banda in UP.

Patel joined the Congress on Friday.