MLC elections: Intense lobbying on for YSRCP tickets

Guntur: Hectic lobbying is going on to secure the ticket to contest in the MLC elections under local bodies' quota with the release of notification for MLC polls on Tuesday.

The Election Commission is conducting the elections for two MLCs in the place of retired MLCs Ummareddy Venkateswarulu belonging to YSRCP and Annam Satish Prabhakar of Telugu Desam Party of Guntur district.

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy assured former MLA Marri Rajasekhar that he would be given berth in the state Cabinet for sacrificing the Assembly seat to Vidadala Rajini in the Assembly elections. Since then he has been eagerly waiting for the MLC seat and has been doing his best to get ticket to contest in the MLC elections.

If he gets the ticket, he is likely to get berth in the state Cabinet. The YSRCP has full majority in the local bodies, the party candidates will win automatically.

Similarly, the name of former Union minister and YSRCP senior leader Ummareddy Venkateswarulu is making rounds for the MLC ticket for the second term. Taking caste equations, the party may consider his name but Ummareddy Venkateswarulu is seeking MLC ticket to his son Venkata Ramana.

Sattenapalli MLA Ambati Ramababu, Ponnuru MLA Kilaru Venkata Rosaiah belong to Kapu community. Similarly, the YSRCP has already given Guntur Mayor's post and GDCC Bank Chairman post to Rathamsetty Seetharamanjaneyulu who belonged to the Kapu community.

The YSRCP leaders are feeling that taking these equations into consideration, the YSRCP high command may field one BC leader.

Meanwhile, Joint Collector A S Dinesh Kumar was appointed the Returning Officer for the MLC elections to be held to elect MLCs under local bodies' quota.