(Image source from: Twitter.com/JaiTDP)
TDP to change candidates in four constituencies?:- During a meeting at the party's central office, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) made some alterations to their previous assembly candidates. Party leader Chandrababu Naidu revealed that sitting MP RRR from Narasapuram will now be running as a TDP candidate for the assembly seat in the same district. Initially, Naidu had planned to assign the Narasapuram MP seat to Raghuram, but the BJP leadership disagreed as the seat was given to BJP in the alliance. As a result, TDP provided the B-Form to their candidate Srinivasa Verma. In response, Naidu decided to field Raghuram for the assembly seat. TDP had previously announced sitting MLA Manthena Ramaraj as their candidate in Narasapuram. Naidu instructed party leaders to discourage him from running and appointed Rama Raju as the district president of the party to facilitate this transition. Additionally, TDP replaced their candidate in Madugu, Anakapalli district. Initially, NRI Paila Prasada Rao was announced as the candidate, but reports indicated that he was not effectively campaigning. As a result, senior March leader and former minister Bandaru Satyanarayanamurthy was appointed as the new candidate.
MS Raju, the state president of the party's Dalit wing from Anantapur district, has been chosen to run for the seat previously held by former MLC Thippeswamy's faction, despite facing strong opposition. Jayachandra Reddy, the Tamballapalle candidate, is also expected to be replaced due to a lackluster campaign and alleged ties to rival groups. Several individuals, including Sarala Reddy, the wife of former Madanapalle MLA Dommalapati Ramesh, former MLA Shankar Yadav, and Konda Narendra, a high-ranking executive at a multinational chip manufacturing company, are being considered as potential replacements. The TDP leadership is also contemplating changes in 3-4 other seats, such as Kamalapuram in Kadapa district and Venkatagiri in Tirupati district. Although initial tickets were given to the children of party in-charges in these areas, there are now suggestions to revert back to their fathers' candidacies. TDP sources have indicated that any additional changes will be announced by Saturday.
