KCR shortlisting candidates for MLC seats

 ​Hyderabad: TRS supremo and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has begun the exercise of finalising names for the members of Legislative Council as 16 seats are getting vacant during this March.

The chief minister is taking into consideration, the caste equations, party loyalists and seniority for finalising the candidates, according to sources. There are 40 members in the Telangana Council and every two years two-thirds of the total seats get vacant and 16 seats are getting vacant in March. 

Out of the 16 seats, seven seats are to be filled under MLA quota, five through local bodies, two through the Teacher’s Constituencies and one each from Graduates Constituency and Governors quota.

Some of the seats have become vacant after the members (K Yadava Reddy, Ramulu Naik and R Bhupati Reddy) were disqualified for anti-party activities and K Muralidhar resigned after joining Congress and some seats have become vacant after the resignation of members as they have become MLAs (M Hanumanth Rao and K Rajgopal Reddy). Under the MLA quota, the Congress is slated to get one seat and six by TRS by virtue of their strengths in the Assembly.

The Election Commission is likely to announce the schedule for elections after publishing the voter’s list and elections may take place in April. According to sources, Home Minister Mohd Mahmood Ali and Md Saleem are likely to get chance again under minority quota. 

The other names doing rounds include KCR’s political secretary Sheri Subhash Reddy, Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Chairman Gyadari Balamallu, TRS general secretary Tekkalapalli Ravinder Rao, party Secretary Pochampally Srinivas Reddy, former Congress leader who joined TRS Kyam Mallesh, former minister P Mahender Reddy, Rythu Samanvaya Samithi chief G Sukhender Reddy may also be accommodated in the Council. 

For the two Teacher’s Constituencies, Paturi Sudhakar Reddy and Pula Ravinder would be the candidates of the party again, sources said. Apart from these names, the leaders who have joined from different parties like T Santosh Kumar is also likely to get the ticket. The names of former MLAs Satyavathi Rathod, Maloth Kavitha are also doing rounds for the post of MLC.

Sources said that K R Suresh Reddy may also be given an opportunity as member of council. There is no clarity on Chairman of Council K Swamy Goud, who is said to be not keen on the council and is seeking Lok Sabha seat in the coming elections.