APCC expresses hope that TRS may not contest in Khairatabad

Hyderabad, Apr 24 (UNI) Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President D Srinivas today expressed the hope that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi(TRS) may not contest the bypoll to Khairatabad Assembly seat.

Addressing a press conference at party headquarters Gandhi Bhavan here, he said all the Floor Leaders, including TRS leaders had agreed to leave both Khairatabad and Terlam Assembly constituencies for the next of the kin of the deceased candidates as a humanitarian gesture.

The Khairatabad assembly constituency fell vacant following the death of senior Congress leader P Janardhana Reddy and the Congress had given ticket to his son Vishnuvardhan Reddy.

The TDP had agreed not to field their candidate for the Khairatabad seat as the Congress would not contest the Terlam assembly constituency in Vizianagaram district and leave it for TDP, which fell vacant following the death of TDP candidate T Jayaprakash.

Mr Srinivas said he had already held discussions with BJP state president Bandaru Dattatreya, CPI secretary K Narayana and CPI(M) leader B V Raghavulu and Lok Satta president Jayaprakash Narayana in this regard.

Denying the TRS allegations that the Congress and the TDP had come to a secret understanding to defeat the TRS in the elections, he said there was no such pact as the main rival of the Congress was TDP.

UNI BR VA SP VC1706