Hyderabad: After long deliberations, the Congress party is likely to finalise its MP candidate for Lok Sabha polls, 2024 on Saturday, April 13 at the Central Election Committee (CEC) meeting in Delhi.
The discussions will include the finalisation of the names of MP candidates for three seats from Telangana-Hyderabad, Khammam and Karimnagar. Ahead of the election notification next week, the names are likely to be released in a day or two.
The Congress party in the state has been accused of being in cohorts with the All India Majlis E Itthad ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and attempting to pitch a weak candidate to the benefit of AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi. However, the parties have denied being allies.
It had earlier been reported that the Congress has considered several candidates including, tennis star Sania Mirza, however, she reportedly turned it down. Following this development, and keeping in mind the agenda for the party to reportedly field a ‘dummy’ candidate, Hyderabad district Congress committee president Sameer Waliullah has been shortlisted.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) general secretary Mohammed Feroz Khan had also opened up about his candidature in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections, saying he won’t be contesting in the polls and there is a ‘compromise’ between the AIMIM and the Congress party.
On being asked about the announcement of Hyderabad Congress candidates and the possibility of him contesting in the polls, Feroz Khan said, “Me, no. There is a compromise between the AIMIM and Congress party, so I am not in the race. The High Command Mallikarjun Kharge will decide.”
