A total of 347 candidates are in the fray for the elections to the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation, scheduled to be held on March 10. Following the withdrawal of the nominations, election authorities issued the final contesting candidates’ list on Thursday.
The number of candidates participating in the municipal polls has drastically come down contrary to the increase in the number of election wards from 59 to 64.
In the 2014 municipal elections, 508 candidates were in the fray and 185 of them were independent candidates, while in the coming polls, there are only 91 independent candidates.
The YSRCP has been the only party to field candidates in all the municipal wards, while Telugu Desam Party, which has an alliance with CPI, has candidates in 57 wards while the latter fielded candidates in six wards, according to details released by V. Prasanna Venkatesh, Additional Election Authority, Vijayawada Municipal Corporation.
The BJP fielded candidates in 22 wards, while the Jana Sena Party candidates are contesting in 41 wards. The Congress fielded candidates in 34 wards, CPI(M) in 22 wards and BSP is contesting in two wards. Seven candidates in the fray are contesting on behalf of other registered parties.
Only two candidates are in the fray in wards 8, 10 and 15. Surprisingly, only YSRCP and Jana Sena are contesting in ward 15. In six wards of 19, 24,26,31,43 and 54 eight candidates, the highest among all the wards, are in the fray.
Nearly half (156) of the total candidates have Class X or “below Class X” as educational qualification. Seventy-five candidates have declared below class X and 81 candidates have declared Class X as their qualification. There are 60 graduates and 31 postgraduates in the fray.
Also, there are 111 homemakers and 94 business persons in the fray, among others, as per their declarations.
Datti Likitha and Abdul Nadeem Akthar contesting as independents from wards 25 and 41 respectively are the youngest contestants at 21.
