Chiranjeevi, Renuka file RS nomination papers

Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi and former Union minister Renuka Choudary on Monday filed their nominations on behalf of the ruling Congress for the biennial elections to Rajya Sabha from Andhra Pradesh.

Former state minister Palvai Govardhan Reddy and former journalist Rapolu Ananda Bhaskar too filed their papers as Congress nominees on the last day of the nomination process.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, Pradesh Congress Committee president Botsa Satyanarayana and a host of other leaders accompanied the candidates on the occasion.

Chiranjeevi was nominated to Rajya Sabha as part of his Praja Rajyam Party's merger with Congress. He is currently an MLA from Tirupati.

Renuka Choudary, who lost the 2009 Lok Sabha election from Khammam, is now a chairperson of the All India Congress Committee and had previously served as a member of the Upper House of Parliament as a Telugu Desam Party candidate.

Govardhan Reddy, a staunch protagonist of Telangana state, is a surprise choice while Bhaskar was nominated at the last minute to apparently fulfill caste equations.