Manmohan gets South Delhi
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Aug 10 — Former Union Finance Minister Dr Manmohan Singh will be the Congress candidate for the prestigious South Delhi constituency.

The candidature of Dr Manmohan Singh was announced here today by the AICC which also decided to renominate Mrs Meira Kumar, member of the dissolved Lok Sabha from Karol Bagh (Reserve) and the AICC General Secretary, Mr R.K. Dhawan, from the New Delhi constituency.

The Congress today cleared a total of 36 candidates, including 33 from Andhra Pradesh, taking the total number of candidates cleared to 108 so far.

Yesterday the party released names of 72 candidates for 11 states and union territories, including some in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.

Both BJP and the Congress have changed their candidates in South Delhi. During the 1998 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP fielded Mrs Sushma Swaraj while the Congress put up Mr Subhash Chopra, who now heads the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee.

In New Delhi, Mr Dhawan will be pitched against Mr Jagmohan, Union Minister for Urban Affairs who is seeking re-election, while in Karol Bagh Mrs Meira Kumar will take on Ms Anita Arya.

The central election committee of the Congress also cleared 33 of the 42 candidates from Andhra Pradesh barring former Chief Minister Mr Nadendla Bhaskara Rao, who was elected from Khammam and Dr B.N. Reddy, the names of the 22, MPs in the dissolved House have been cleared.

The list also includes former Chief Ministers K. Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy from Kurnool, Mr N. Janardhana Reddy, who shifted from Bapatla to Narasaropet and former Union Ministers, Mr P. Upendra (Vijayawada) and P. Shiv Shankar (Tenali).

The Andhra Pradesh PPC Chief, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, and former PCC chief K. Rosaiah have opted out of the contest. They were members of the dissolved Lok Sabha. Both expected to be fielded for the Assembly elections due to be held simultaneously.

Mr Vivekanand Reddy, brother of Dr Y S Rajasekhar Reddy, will be the party candidate for the Guddapah parliamentary seat.

The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) will contest 33 Lok Sabha seats in the coming elections next month, IUML President G M Banatwala said today in Mumbai.

The IUML, aligned with the United Democratic Front in Kerala, is holding seat sharing talks with the Tamil Manila Congress in Tamil Nadu and the Janata Dal (Secular) in Karnataka.

Referring to the alliance of the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP), he alleged that it had been formed to divide secular votes and strengthen communal forces.

"Both NCP and SP cannot go with the Congress and in the post-election scenario there is likelihood of them supporting the BJP-led coalition at the Centre, he said.

To a query on a uniform civil code, Mr Banatwala said "anything negating personal, civil and social laws is a threat to national integration".