Big Friday release: Cong to announce its 50 candidates

Leader of Opposition in the legislative Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar said the party will field youngsters in the polls. The names will be announced only after the Central Election Committee, headed by the party’s interim president Sonia Gandhi, gives its nod.

The Congress will announce on September 20 its first list of 50 candidates for the Assembly elections, with almost all sitting party MLAs likely to figure on it. The party has also decided to field more youngsters in the wake of senior party leaders defecting to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena.

Balasaheb Bhausaheb Thorat, is a leader of farmers and Indian National congress legislator in Sangamner (HT FILE)

The party’s central screening committee, headed by former union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, held several rounds of meetings in Delhi on Wednesday. It has finalised candidates in almost 100 of the 125 seats, which have come to the party as part of the pact with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Maharashtra Congress president Balasaheb Thorat said, “We have not given up after the exodus from the party. We have planned to contest powerful candidates in BJP’s high-profile constituencies. You will be surprised to see our candidate against chief minister Devendra Fadnavis from Nagpur South West…Besides the sitting MLAs, the first list will have the names of 15 more candidates in other constituencies.”

Leader of Opposition in the legislative Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar said the party will field youngsters in the polls. The names will be announced only after the Central Election Committee, headed by the party’s interim president Sonia Gandhi, gives its nod. Senior state leaders and members of the screening committee are expected to meet Gandhi, before the list is announced.

Thorat said the state unit of the party has requested Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi to campaign in the state.