Top Cong leaders lobby for two vacant MLC positions

Hyderabad : With just a week left for filing nominations for the MLC elections under MLA quota, hectic lobbying is witnessed within the Congress. At least a dozen contenders vie for grabbing the opportunity towards enlisting themselves as legislator and join the ranks of their colleagues who have won as MLA recently.

With separate notification for MLC elections, the Congress party is eyeing both vacant positions whose polling will be held on January 29. Following Assembly polls, scores of leaders including those who have sacrificed the MLA tickets have been eagerly waiting for the chance to turn it in their favor. Also amongst the leaders who are under consideration are from Muslim community who are yet to receive a significant position in the party, unlike Karnataka where there are 9 MLAs including two Ministers from the community. By keeping in mind different equations including caste and community the Congress high command is likely to take a call on finalising the candidates before the Sankranthi festival.

Amongst the top names include former Minister G Chinna Reddy, former MLA & newly constituted Dharani committee member M Kodanda Reddy, educationist PCC senior vice president and educationist Zafar Javed, Suryapet based leader, Patel Ramesh Reddy, former MLA, Vem Narender Reddy, Hyderabad based businessman Ali bin Ibrahim Masqati, PCC working president B Mahesh Kumar Goud, PCC general secretary Addanki Dayakar, PCC senior vice president G Niranjan amongst the top contenders. If the party decides to evade the norm that those who lost recent Assembly polls should not be given a chance, then one of the names that always remains on the list is former Minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir’s name besides Nampally’s Assembly candidate Feroz Khan from Muslim community.

Some of the leaders within the party are of the view that at least one of the leaders from city should be given the seat, as Hyderabad does not have any representation in the Assembly. “There is a maximum chance that the Congress will be able to get both the seats. The party needs to understand that in the Council elections Hyderabad should be given priority. And if at least one makes it to the Council there will be a city representative. He or She will also be able to oversee important decision making bodies like District Review Committees (DRS) as the public representatives,” felt one of the aspirants.