Council Nomination: D Srinivas Out

The Congress, on Saturday, revealed its candidates for the upcoming Legislative Council elections. M S Prabhakar and Kasani Gyaneswar were chosen by the party heads for GHMC and Ranga Reddy constituencies respectively. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), a Congress ally in Hyderabad, was given the second council seat from GHMC (there are 2 Council seats from GHMC) as part of the understanding it had with the Congress.

Kasani Gyaneswar, fielded for the Ranga Reddy constituency, is President of Mana Party. The Congress, which has strong contenders in the RR region, chose Gyaneswar expecting him to match his rivals through his influence, considered significant.

M S Prabhakar, an Andhra Pradesh Congress Commission (APCC) Secretary, is said to have been pitched by his close associate Health Minister Danam Nagender. The nomination of Prabhakar upset the plans of APCC President D Srinivas (DS), and took his loyalists by surprise. DS had been lobbying in the offices in New Delhi often and was expected to be through, and Prabhakar's name coming out was shocking to the APCC chief. Apparently, Srinivas's opposition camp, which includes Nagender and Mukesh Goud along with other legislators, advised party heads that the Council seat from GHMC must be contested by a local Congress leader.

After missing the MLC seat, DS now has two options; he can contest in the Rajya Sabha elections in June, or contest from the Nizamabad Urban constituency for the Assembly bypoll elections, from where he lost the last time.

April 20 is the last date for filing nominations for the Member of Legislative Council (MLC) elections being held on May 7 in the above 3 constituencies - 2 from the GHMC and one from the Ranga Reddy district.