Cong to declare MLC candidates soon

Hyderabad: Congress is likely to announce the names of the candidates for the polls of two MLC seats to be held on January 29 under MLA quota in one or two days as TPCC president and Chief Minister A Revnath Reddy held a final round of talks with AICC chief Mallikarjuna Kharrge and zeroed in on the candidates .

AICC leader Rahul Gandhi and Telangana in charge and senior Congress leader Deepadas Munshi were also present in the meeting. Senior Congress leader G Chinna Reddy, former MLA & newly constituted Dharani committee member M Kodanda Reddy, PCC senior vice president Zafar Javed, Suryapet-based leader, Patel Ramesh Reddy, former MLA, Vem Narender Reddy, 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 for two MLC posts.

Party sources said that Revanth also discussed with the leaders the cabinet expansion as six berths were still lying vacant.

One of the MLCs would get a ministerial post in the cabinet expansion. The clarity on the expansion of the cabinet would come only after the completion of the MLC bypolls. Before the announcement of the schedule for Lok Sabha elections, the Chief Minister wanted to fill ministerial berths in his cabinet.