The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) has nominated four candidates from their party for the upcoming MLC polls on March 12. The party has offered one seat to their ally All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM).
The Telangana Chief Minister, K Chandrashekar Rao has nominated Home Minister Mahmood Ali, former MLA Satyavathi Rathore who was denied ticket in the 2018 polls for the MLC posts. He also nominated E Mallesham and S Subash Reddy for their active participation during the statehood agitation.
Shortly after one MLC seat was offered to AIMIM, the party president Asaduddin Owaisi tweeted saying, ”I’d like to thank @TelanganaCMO & TRS Working President@KTRTRS for leaving a seat for AIMIM in the upcoming MLC elections. Inshallah, AIMIM and TRS will together win 17 Lok Sabha seats in the General Elections,.” The party is yet to nominate its candidate.
The state Election Commission has notified the election schedule to be held for five MLC seats under the Assembly quota after the term of the previous MLCs expired.
With the TRS announcing four seats and offering the fifth to MIM, the Congress will require to put up a stiff fight to win at least one MLC seat. The party previously had two MLC seats held by Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy and Mohammad Ali Shabbir.
To win one MLC seat, a party needs to get at least 21 MLA votes. The Congress presently has 19 MLAs and if the TDP MLAs don't jump ship, their tally would be 21.
In the Telangana assembly, 90 MLAs are from TRS, 7 from MIM. With reports about Telugu Desam MLA Sandra Venkat Veeraiah joining the TRS, the tally in TRS camp would be 98 MLAs.The Telangana Chief Minister is presently working out strategies to win all five MLC seats to keep the Congress out.