The Congress released on Saturday a second list of 32 candidates for the assembly elections in Rajasthan, fielding former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh's son Manvendra Singh against chief minister Vasundhara Raje from Jhalrapatan constituency.
The second list was released by the Congress general secretary and Rajasthan in-charge Mukul Wasnik in New Delhi.
The opposition party had declared 152 candidates in the first list on Thursday night.
Manvendra Singh, a former BJP MLA from Sheo, quit the saffron party in September to join the Congress.
Raje said the Congress fielded Manvendra from her Jhalrapatan constituency as it could not find any other candidate.
"The Congress could not find any candidate and he (Manvendra Singh) was to be given ticket from somewhere and therefore, he was sent here (Jhalrapatan)," Raje said addressing the public after filing her nomination
papers in Jhalawar district.
"But they should know that it is not a fight of one person, this is a contest fought by Jhalawar and Rajasthan, which is a family," she said.
The chief minister was accompanied by party leader Shahnawaz Hussain, her son and Jhalawar MP Dushyant Singh, among others.
Reacting to the Congress announcement, state BJP president Madan Lal Saini said the decision will have no impact and the party will retain the seat.
He said Singh, who left the BJP and joined the Congress last month, is not a big name and will face defeat.
"There will be no impact on results and the chief minister will retain the seat," he said.
Saini said being born in a Rajput family does not give anybody a "big name".
Raje had retained her Jhalrapatan seat in the 2013 assembly election with a margin of 60,896 votes by securing 63.14 per cent of total 2,28,977 votes.
Raje has been representing Jhalrapatan seat in the House of 200 assembly seats since 2003.
Senior Congress leaders, including Ashok Gehlot, Sachin Pilot and CP Joshi, are contesting the state election.
The Congress has retained a sitting MLA and dropped one in the second list. Deeg Kumher MLA Vishwendra Singh gets the party ticket again while Rajakhedra MLA Pradhyuman Singh does not figure in it.
Eight other candidates in Saturday's list lost the 2013 assembly elections. The two women in it are the wives of candidates who were defeated in 2013.
Pradesh COngress Committee vice president Archana Sharma has been fielded from Malvia Nagar against Kalicharan Saraf, health minister in the state's BJP government.
Former state minister Gurmeet Singh Kunner will contest in Karanpur against BJP candidate and minister Surendra Pal Singh TT.
Kunner was the minister for water resources in the Ashok Gehlot government.
