The BJP front in Kerala is ahead of the ruling UDF and Opposition LDF in announcing candidates for the May 16 Assembly election.
The party has already announced candidates for 76 constituencies in two sets. The first set of 22 of was announced a fortnight back while the second list was released on Saturday. The balance will be announced in a week after seat-sharing talks with small alliance partners.
The BJP, which had reportedly planned to field cricketer Sreesanth in Thrippunithura near Kochi, changed its mind and has announced he would contest from the prestigious Thiruvananthapuram Central constituency.
The party had wanted to field actor Suresh Gopi there, but the latter refused.
Though Sreesanth had preferred Thrippunithura, the RSS was keen on fielding Thuravoor Viswambaran, a Sanskrit scholar and religious preacher, there.