The TRS has selected its candidates to fill two vacancies in Rajya Sabha from Telangana more or less on the expected lines, nominating D. Srinivas and Capt V. Laxmikantha Rao, and choosing Mohammed Fareeduddin as a replacement for Roads and Buildings Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao in the Legislative Council.
The selection of Mr. Srinivas was never in doubt ever since he joined the TRS less than a year ago, but what went against him was that he belonged to the same community as the only Rajya Sabha member of the party now, K. Keshava Rao. Moreover, Mr. Srinivas was already holding the rank of a Cabinet Minister as Special Advisor to Government on inter-State issues.
Mr. Laxmikantha Rao, a close relative of former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao, is a staunch loyalist of TRS president and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao.
He edged past another aspirant for the ticket, C. Laxmirajam, who took over the reins of Namaste Telangana daily, promoted among others by KCR himself, at a critical time on assurance that he would be rewarded suitably.
Both Mr. Laxmikantha Rao and Mr. Laxmirajam belong to Brahmin community. Incidentally, the latter transferred majority shareholding to another director D. Damodar Rao and quit the daily.
On the other hand, Mr. Damodar Rao was also considered a strong contender for Rajya Sabha ticket but sources said that he was not totally ruled out as the TRS could still field him in the 2018 elections when fresh vacancies in the Upper House crop up. With 88 out of 119 members in the Assembly, the TRS is comfortably placed to win the two Rajya Sabha seats in Telangana that fall vacant every two years.
The party chose Mr. Fareeduddin to fill the vacancy in the Legislative Council caused by the resignation of Mr. Tummala Nageswara Rao, who was recently elected to the Assembly.
It was stated that the Chief Minister promised to give Mr. Fareeduddin, a former Congress Minister, a respectable position when he quit the party to join TRS.
