Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and all his cabinet colleagues figure in the first list of 71 Congress candidates announced by the All India Congress committee on Monday for the coming assembly elections in Kerala [Images].

While Chandy will contest from his traditional Puthupally seat in Kottayam district, Speaker Therambil Ramakrishnan has been fielded again from Trichur and senior leader and former parliamentarian K V Thomas from Ernakulam segment.

Ministers whose names figured in the list are A Sujana Pal (Kozhikode-I), A P Anil Kumar (Wandoor-SC), Aryadan Mohammad (Nilambur), K P Anil Kumar (Srikrishnapuram), Dominic Presentation (Palluruthy), K C Venugopal (Allapupuzha), Adoor Prakash (Konni), N Sakthan (Nemon) and Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishanan (Adoor).

Senior leader and Finance Minister Vakkom Purushottaman had expressed his inability to contest in the elections due to personal reasons. Congress, on a high after clinching a deal with breakaway leader K Karunakaran's outfit, is contesting in 77 assembly segments, 17 less from last elections, which it has given to Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran) as part of the agreement.

Youth Congress leader Satheesan Pacheni, who had unsuccessfully contested against Leader of the Opposition V S Achuthanandan from Malampuzha seat, has been fielded again to take on the CPI(M) stalwart.