VIJAYAWADA: Nandigama Municipal Chairman election saw a rift between MLA Tangirala Sowmya and Vijayawada MP Kesineni Sivanath, complicating the selection of the Telugu Desam Party candidate.
MLA Sowmya pushed for giving the B form to 14th ward councillor Kamasani Satyavathi, whom she supported, while the party leadership issued the B form to 8th ward councillor Sakhamuri Swarnalatha, who was backed by MP Kesineni Chinni. As a result, Sowmya confined the councillors to her office.
The election process was delayed when nine councillors from the coalition failed to attend the meeting, causing a lack of quorum. Election Officer Balakrishna announced the postponement of the election to the following day.
After the delay, MLA Sowmya explained that the coalition had 13 members, but her councillors had missed the meeting due to confusion caused by multiple chairmanship contenders. She reassured them that they would abide by the high command’s final decision.