Mukka Sravani to cross swords with Varudhu Kalyani for Mayoral post

Visakhapatnam: Political heat is rising in Visakhapatnam as the ruling party and YSRCP announced their candidates for the coveted Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) Mayoral post.

The TDP announced former corporator Mukka Sravani as its candidate for the Mayor’s post on Friday night, while YSRCP declared MLC and State women’s wing president Varudhu Kalyani as its nominee a day earlier. With both major parties finalising their candidates, attention has shifted to the electoral battle for taking the reins of the city’s civic administration. Amid much fanfare and a rally carried out by the party leaders, Varudhu Kalyani filed her nomination for the local body polls on Saturday.

Although candidates from other parties and independents are entering the fray, the main contest for the Mayoral post is expected to be between TDP and YSRCP.

Even earlier, Mukka Sravani’s name was doing the rounds as a possible alliance candidate from the beginning of GVMC election process. After considering several aspirants and weighing pros and cons, the alliance leadership announced its candidature, ending speculation over its choice.

The nomination process for GVMC elections is scheduled to conclude on Sunday (October 18). YSRCP released its list of corporator candidates on Friday, while the ruling alliance is expected to finalise its complete list by Saturday night amid continued discussions over seat-sharing among its allied parties.

The delay in finalising the alliance’s ward-wise candidates has left several aspirants waiting for clarity. Apparently, many corporator candidates are expected to file their nominations on Sunday.

As the nomination deadline approaches, political activity is gathering pace across the city. After the scrutiny and withdrawal of nominations, an intensified campaign is set to take shape as a run-up to the GVMC polls. During the second day of the nomination process for Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation elections, returning officers of respective zones reported that seven nominations were filed for the Mayoral contest and 265 nominations were filed for the ward member contest.

Also, 66 nominations were filed for ward members on October 16 and 265 nominations were filed on October 17, bringing the total nominations in two days to 331.

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Rani Devalla

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Rani Devalla is an experienced journalist specialised in a range of beats. From crime to politics, health to human interest, education to defence along with entertainment and feature stories, Rani Devalla, an accomplished writer with a passion for exploring diverse genres, has been reporting for the past 14 years. Serving as Bureau Chief of The Hans India in Visakhapatnam, Rani Devalla contributes to the organisation's editorial department through daily reporting, special stories and feature stories. After completing B.Com, Rani Devalla pursued Masters in Human Resource Management. Prior to joining The Hans India, Rani Devalla worked as a Principal Correspondent with The Hindu Group for six-and-a-half years. With rich expertise, she brings diverse perspectives to her reporting that makes her narratives stand out. When not immersed in writing, the journalist spends time reading, travelling and journaling.

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