ADILABAD: The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) has reportedly shortlisted four names for the Adilabad ticket and sent the list to the All India Congress Committee (AICC) for finalising the candidates.
Among the four ticket aspirants are Naitham Sumalatha, a doctor, and Kova Daulath Rao, an advocate and the state president of Adivasi Sena. The other two contenders are former teacher Atram Suguna and former employee of Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) Atram Bhaskar. Both took voluntary retirement to enter politics.
The party high command has reportedly instructed Sunil Kanugolu’s team to conduct a survey on the electoral prospects of all four aspiring candidates. Based on the survey report, the leadership will finalise the candidate.
Meanwhile, Panchayat Raj & Rural Development Minister Dansari Anasuya alias Seethakka, who is also the district in-charge minister, has been organising Assembly constituency-wise meetings. During the Khanapur and Mudhole constituency meetings, she urged the party cadre and leaders to work unitedly to ensure the party’s victory in the Adilabad segment.
It may be mentioned here that there are over 1.50 lakh Adivasi voters in this ST-reserved segment and their support is vital if a party wants to bag this seat.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Adivasis supported the BJP candidate Soyam Bapu Rao and he went on to win the seat.
In the recent Assembly segments, the Congress allotted the Asifabad and Boath tickets to Lambadas. The grand old party gave the Khanapur ticket to the Adivasis while promising that the Adilabad LS ticket would be allotted to a leader from their community.
Now the Adivasis are lobbying hard for the Adilabad ticket. A couple of aspirants have also started campaigning though the party is yet to finalise the candidate.
