Vijayamma from Vizag LS seat

• List of 170 MLA and 24 LS candidates announced
• Names of 5 Assembly and 1 LS candidates soon
• Party retains all the 16 sitting MLAs

Hyderabad: After a careful exercise, the YSRCP seems to have made a strategic move in giving almost equal importance to the Reddys and BCs including Kapus in the list of 170 candidates for Assembly and 24 LS candidates announced here on Monday. The candidates for the remaining 5 Assembly and 1 Lok Sabha seat will be announced shortly.

The interesting part of the list is that the party has finally decided not to field Sharmila and keep her free so that she can be the star campaigner in Telangana region. According to the list, of the 24 LS candidates, 9 are Reddys and six are BCs. The party has decided not to field senior leaders – Konathala Ramakrishna, M V Mysura Reddy, Umma Reddy Venkteswarlu and Dadi Veerabhadra Rao from the contest.

Party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy who at present represents Kadapa LS seat will shift to Pulivendula Assembly constituency and his mother and party honorary President YS Vijayalakshmi will be the party candidate from Visakhapatnam. The party has also retained all the 16 sitting MLAs. As anticipated, Jagan’s cousin YS Avinash Reddy was allotted Kadapa Lok Sabha seat. The party chief’s uncle Y V Subba Reddy and maternal uncle P Ravindranath Reddy would contest from Ongole Parliament and Kamalapuram Assembly constituencies respectively.

Of the 170 candidates, the party allotted 38 Assembly constituencies to BC (Backward Class) community. It has accommodated 28 candidates from SC community. Eight STs and four Muslims have also been given tickets. Jagan selected businessmen such as Vanka Ravindra, Koneru Prasad and Alla Ayodyarami Reddy for Narasapur, Vijayawada and Narsaraopet LS segments respectively. Same is the case with Butta Renuka, party candidate from Kurnool LS seat and D Sreedhar Reddy from Hindupur.

Former minister K Parthasarathy who recently joined the party and belongs to Yadav community will be the party candidate from Machilipatnam . Shanti from Srikakulam and B Renuka from Kurnool Parliamentary constituency would test the waters.

Senior leader K Ramakrishna’s brother K Raghu was given party ticket from Anakapalli and D Veerabhadra Rao’s son D Ratnakar is in the fray from Visakhapatnam ( East) assembly .

Dr Sudha, the daughter of TDP senior leader and MLC Nannapaneni Rajakumari will be the party candidate from Venukonda Assembly seat in Guntur district.

Dharamana Prasada Rao and his younger brother D Krishna Das were allotted Srikakulam and Narasannapet Assembly constituencies.

Party’s Vizianagaram Parliament candidate RVSSK Ranga Rao (Baby Nayana) and Bobbili Assembly candidates Ravu Sujay Krishna Ranga Rao are among other siblings who got tickets.

Nellore Parliamentary constituency candidate Mekapati Rajmohan Reddy’s son M Goutham Reddy has been fielded from Atmakur and the senior leader’s brother M Chandrasekhara Reddy will contest from Udayagiri assembly constitutency.

Party senior leaders and couple Bhuma Nagireddy and Bhuma Sobha Nagi Reddy and her brother SV Mohan Reddy have been fielded from Nandyal. Allagadda and Kurnool Assembly constituencies in Kurnool district.

Punganur Assembly candidate Pedireddy Ramachandra Reddy’s son PV Mithun Reddy was fighting from Rajampet Parliamentary constituency.

Y Bala Nagi Reddy (Manthralam), Y Siva Prasad Reddy ( Adoni) and Y Venkatramui Reddy ( Gunthakal) are the three brothers from a single family to be given tickets. Gottipati brothers – Bharat and Ravi Kumar – are fighting the election from Parchur and Addanki in Guntur district.

While film actor R K Roja Selvamani will contest from Nagari, noted film Director Puri Jagannath’s younger brother P Uma Shankara Ganesh will contest from Narsipatnam Assembly constituency.