As soon as the withdrawal of nominations ended, Telugu Desam and YSR Congress announced their candidates for the chairpersonship of the Zilla Praja Parishad. Lalam Bhavani, wife of senior TD leader Lalam Bhaskara Rao, and Boddeda Naga Subhashini, wife of YSR Congress rural unit president and former chairman of RECS, Anakapalle Boddeda Prasad, are the candidates announced for the post. They are contesting from Rambilli and S. Rayavaram ZPTCs respectively.
A total of 190 candidates were left in the fray for 39 ZPTCs in the district after 148 withdrew their nomination on Monday. TD and YSR Congress have candidates in all the ZPTCs but Congress could find candidates in only 20 ZPTCs. The CPI and CPI(M) are contesting in the Agency ZPTCs and the BJP, BSP and Lok Satta in a few places. YSR Congress and TD are in straight contest in Bheemunipatnam, Sabbavaram and K. Kotapadu ZPTCs.
Narsipatnam MLA Bolem Mutyalapapa, who switched from Congress to the YSR Congress a few days ago, received a shock when the party handed over the B forms to her rival Bolem Narasimha Murthy for the MPTC elections and Ms. Mutyalapapa group’s supporters in four MPTCs in the mandal were forced to continue in the fray as independents. The treatment meted out to another leader, Ruttala Yerrapatrudu of Makavaripalem mandal, was no different as the YSR Congress gave him only two B forms while five of his supporters were in contest. He refused to take the two and his men said they would contest as independents.
As many as 14 MPTCs saw unanimous election. Telugu Desam candidates grabbed nine MPTCs, independents three and CPI and YSR Congress one each. Nearly 2000 candidates are in the fray for the 654 MPTCs. TDP is in contest in 621, YSR Congress in 619, Congress in 172, CPI(M) in 126, BJP in 61, CPI in 51 and independents in 320 MPTCs.
