BJP Readies AP Candidates List, Suspense Over Somu Veerraju

New Delhi/Guntur: The BJP appears to have finalised its list of candidates for the upcoming Andhra Pradesh assembly elections, where it has forged a pre-poll alliance with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Jana Sena Party (JSP).

As per the seat-sharing arrangement, the TDP and JSP have allocated six Lok Sabha and 10 assembly constituencies to the BJP in the state.

The BJP's Central Election Committee met recently in the national capital to take a call on the candidates and their allotted constituencies after discussions with the state leadership. The BJP's parliamentary board is likely to meet again today for the final approval.

While the final list is expected to be released in the next couple of days, sources indicate the candidates have been firmed up for the Lok Sabha seats of Anakapalli, Araku, Rajahmundry, Narasapuram, Rajampet and Tirupati.

The likely candidates include CM Ramesh (Anakapalli), Kothapalli Geetha (Araku), D. Purandeswari (Rajahmundry), former MP Gokaraju Gangaraju or Srinivasa Varma (Narasapuram), Kiran Kumar Reddy (Rajampet) and either former IAS Varaprasad or Ratnaprabha (Tirupati).

Meanwhile, some prominent names like GVL Narasimha Rao and PVN Madhav, who were eyeing MP tickets, are reportedly disappointed. The suspense also continues over BJP’s former state president Somu Veerraju's candidature. If the leadership asks Purandeswari to contest from Rajahmundry Lok Sabha seat, Veerraju will likely get a chance to join the election fray.

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