With the Andhra Pradesh High Court clearing the way for local-body elections in the state within the next six weeks, political activity has intensified in Nellore, where the expected reservation of the Municipal Corporation mayoral post for the general category has triggered a fresh contest over who should be fielded.
In Nellore, the mayoral post is particularly significant because it could reportedly fall under the general category.
The city has not seen a general-category mayoral opportunity for roughly three decades, with the reservation rotating among categories including women, tribal women and BCs.
The prospect of a general-category mayor has consequently intensified lobbying within the major political parties.
Within the TDP, party MP Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy and his wife Prashanthi Reddy, who is the MLA from Kovur, are said to be strongly pushing for their preferred candidate for the Nellore mayoral post.
The couple is reportedly backing Roop Kumar Yadav as the TDP’s mayoral candidate, irrespective of whether the seat is reserved for the general category, Backward Classes (BCs), Scheduled Castes (SCs) or any other category.
According to sources, Prashanthi Reddy has allegedly asserted in private conversations that no one would be allowed to propose another candidate against their wishes.
She is also reported to have said that the couple had invested up to Rs 500 crore in the TDP and that they were the ones arranging funds for the party whenever party working president Nara Lokesh required them.
The couple is said to have indicated that they would not permit anyone else to have a say in deciding the mayoral candidate.
Prashanthi Reddy is also alleged to have openly stated that party affairs in the district should proceed according to her directions.
These developments have reportedly led to a situation in which no other TDP leader has come forward to stake a claim for the mayoral candidature, amid speculation over the municipal elections.
However, senior Nellore minister Ponguru Narayana is reportedly lobbying for his associate Vemireddy Pattabhiram Reddy, CEO of Narayana Group of Hospitals.
He is said to be opposing the candidature of Roop Kumar Yadav. The proposal is reportedly under the consideration of the senior party leadership.
The issue is complicated by the social composition of Nellore district, where the Reddy community has traditionally had considerable political influence.
There is reportedly concern within political circles that fielding a BC candidate for a general-category seat could create dissatisfaction among sections of the upper-caste electorate.
Nellore Rural MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy, who has political influence over a substantial part of the Municipal Corporation area, would ordinarily have been expected to play a major role in the selection of the mayoral candidate.
However, according to reports, Kotamreddy has so far maintained a low profile on the issue rather than openly challenging the leadership’s position.
