The Bharatiya Janata Party today released the first list of 52 candidates for the 119-member Telangana assembly polls. The BJP has fielded the chairman of the state election management committee Eatala Rajender from two seats- Gajwel and Huzurabad. This sets the tone for a high-stake election in the Gajwel seat where Rajender will contest against Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao. 


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The saffron party also fielded MP Soyam Bapu Rao from the Boath seat, MP Arvind Dharmapuri from the Koratla and former party president Bandi Sanjay Kumar from the Karimnagar seat. While the saffron party has fielded three MPs in the first list, names like BJP state vice-president DK Aruna, former MPs Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy and M Vijayshanti are missing from this list. Controversial MLA T Raja Singh will contest from the Goshamahal seat. It's notable that the BJP reinstated Raja Singh early this morning. He was suspended from the party in August over his remarks on Prophet Mohammad. 



This list comprises candidates from Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, the Reddy community and the Velama community. The BJP has also decided to allow the Jana Sena Party (JSP) to contest 12 Assembly constituencies as part of a pre-poll alliance. Therefore, the BJP will field 107 candidates for the polls.


The list contains names of 12 female candidates including Amarajula Sridevi, T Aruna Tara, Annapurnamma Aleti, Dr Boga Sravani, Kankanala Niveditha Reddy. BJP state spokesperson Rani Rudrama is up against BRS working president KT Rama Rao from the Sircilla seat while Boga Shravani, the municipal chairperson of Jagtial municipality, who switched from the BRS to the BJP, will contest from the Jagtial seat.