Trichy: The list of Congress candidates for the nine Lok Sabha constituencies in the state will finally be released by TNCC president K S Alagiri on Saturday. The announcement of the list was delayed considerably due to infighting among party leaders for tickets when almost all prominent parties including BJP had announced their candidates in the state.Though candidates were finalized in most of the seats, too many contenders had been delaying a decision on Karur, Trichy and Krishnagiri. However, a party source said the list was ready and would be released by the TNCC president before noon. The list may throw up some surprises as there are possibilities of changes in the names of prospective candidates that have been making the rounds in the past few days. While Congress spokesperson S Jothimani, who was handpicked by Rahul Gandhi for the seat, continues to be the strongest contender for the party ticket from Karur, there are 16 others also in the race.Among the prominent names is of AICC member K Subramanian who the TNCC has recommended. His name has also been proposed by ally DMK in Karur, according to reliable sources from the party, which makes his chances bright. He had earlier written to the party high command against the candidature of Jothimani. A Congress leader in Karur said that the party candidate should be able to spend enough and enjoy the patronage of party workers to give a tough fight to someone as formidable as Thambidurai of the AIADMK who had won the seat four times. Apart from Karur, the announcement of candidates of Trichy and Krishnagiri constituencies was also dragging on as former TNCC presidents S Thirunavakkarasar and E V K S Elangovan respectively were seeking tickets. Mohan Kumaramangalam, son of former union minister Rangarajan Kumaramangalam, is also one of the strong contenders who has been camping in New Delhi negotiating with the party headquarters. Khushboo too has pitched for tickets over the past few days making the selection tough, said a party source in Trichy.

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