Telangana Rashtra Samiti’s political clout in Hyderabad received a boost after four of the candidates it backed in the Secunderabad Cantonment elections, emerged victorious on Tuesday.
Ahead of the GHMC polls, the outcome of Tuesday’s SCB polls came as a booster dose for the TRS, which is eyeing the civic body in the coming months. Pressing into service all its top guns in the campaign, the results came as a relief for the party. Counting of votes was taken up at P.G. College in Secunderabad. Of the 1.67 lakh registered voters, nearly 75,000 votes were polled on January 11. Winners in ward number 2, 4, 6 and 8 were backed by TRS.
Incidentally, candidates who won in ward 1 and 3, Maheshwar Reddy and P. Anita, were rebel candidates after TRS refused to back their candidature.
While Mr. Maheshwar Reddy defeated Jampana Pratap who was on the board since 1992, the latter’s wife J. Vidyavathi also a former board member, lost to Ms. Anita in the women-reserved ward 3.
Soon after the results were announced, TRS was quick to claim that the rebel candidates were still with the party. “Those who emerged victorious in ward 1 and 3 are in the party’s fold,” confirmed Commercial Taxes Minister T. Srinvas Yadav, who campaigned for the party’s candidates.
He also claimed that J. Ramakrishna, who contested and won from ward 5, had joined the party after his victory.
Ward 5 was reserved for women during the last elections and was represented by Mr. Ramakrishna’s wife M. Anuradha.
“I will be able to confirm my entry into TRS in a few days. I will most likely be joining the party,” he said, when contacted.
With Ramakrishna joining TRS, the party now has the support of seven of the eight ward members. In ward 7, Congress backed P. Bhagyasree, wife of former board member Shyam Kumar, emerged winner.
New board members are: J. Maheshwar Reddy, S. Keshav Reddy, P. Anita, Nalini Kiran, J. Ramakrishna, K. Panduranga Yadav, P. Bhagyasree and T. Loganath.
The Secunderabad Cantonment officials will now have to prepare for the first meeting of the new board.
Before the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) can convene the meeting, board’s president will have to send names of the elected members to the Ministry of Defence for publication in the Central gazette. Officials informed that it can take as long as one month before the first meeting is convened.
