The Nellore Mayor election has taken a new turn after the ruling Telugu Desam nominated former Deputy Mayor P. Roop Kumar Yadav, a Backward Classes leader, for the post ahead of the upcoming municipal elections. His nomination sets up a contest with YSRC candidate Anam Vijay Kumar Reddy.
Roop Kumar Yadav filed his nomination in Nellore on Saturday in the presence of prominent leaders of the National Democratic Alliance. His candidature had been widely anticipated after he emerged as the frontrunner for the mayoral post within the alliance.
The decision to field a BC leader is drawing attention because the Nellore Mayor’s post falls under the Open Category and the city has traditionally been considered a stronghold of the Reddy community. The nomination gives the election a wider political dimension as the ruling alliance seeks to consolidate support across different social groups in the city.
The Nellore Municipal Corporation has also undergone a significant expansion before the elections. The civic body, which previously had 54 divisions, now has 72. Thirty-six divisions fall under the Nellore City Assembly constituency, represented by Municipal Administration Minister Dr Ponguru Narayana. The remaining 36 divisions are located in the Nellore Rural constituency, represented by three-time MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy.
Both legislators have taken responsibility for securing a decisive victory for the NDA nominee. The alliance leadership is also working to consolidate its support base and prevent a split in votes among sections of the Reddy community, according to the report.
Speaking during the nomination process, Nellore Rural MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy said the NDA was aiming for a victory margin of more than one lakh votes for Roop Kumar Yadav. The statement indicates the scale of the contest the alliance expects in the expanded municipal corporation.
Five nominations were received for the Nellore Mayor’s post on Saturday, Additional Election Authority and Municipal Commissioner Y.O. Nandan said. Two nominations were filed by the Telugu Desam and two by the YSRC, while one nomination was submitted by an independent candidate.
The mayoral contest will take place alongside elections across the expanded corporation. The increase from 54 to 72 divisions will broaden the administrative and electoral footprint of the civic body, with the city and rural constituencies each accounting for half of the divisions.
The immediate next step is the scrutiny and processing of the nominations received for the mayoral post as part of the general municipal election process. The election authority has not provided further details in the supplied report on the schedule for scrutiny, withdrawal or polling.
