Intense lobbying on for mayor post in Thanjavur Corporation

With the DMK alliance winning 40 of the 51 wards in Thanjavur Corporation, intense lobbying is on for the post of mayor.

THANJAVUR: With the DMK alliance winning 40 of the 51 wards in Thanjavur Corporation, intense lobbying is on for the post of mayor.

The 156-year-old Thanjavur municipality was upgraded into a Corporation in 2014 and the recently-concluded elections was the first after Thanjavur became a Corporation. All the elected ward members of the DMK have gone to Chennai to meet Chief Minister MK Stalin, during which some are likely to push their name to be considered for mayor post.

The names doing rounds include Shan Ramanathan, Anjugam Boopathy and S C Mehta.

Shan Ramanathan, who got elected from Ward 45, is the south district organiser of the DMK youth wing. He has the experience of working as councillor in earlier municipal councils of the Corporation. He is considered to be a person liked by DMK youth wing leader Udhayanidhi Stalin. Ramanathan, who aspired to contest for Assembly elections, is hopeful of getting the mayor post.

The other contender, Anjugam Boopathy, has been elected from Ward 51. She has been the district organiser of the DMK doctors wing. Though the ward was a general one, the party high command gave her a chance to contest and she emerged victorious. Earlier, Anjugam Boopathy, whose father Boopathy was a DMK councillor in Thanjavur municipality, contested the 2016 Assembly elections on a DMK ticket and lost. However, when byelections were held in 2019, Anjugam was not given a ticket to contest. She was, at that time, promised some post after the urban local body elections are held, her supporters said.

The third contender is DMK veteran S Chandrasekara Metha (68), who got elected from Ward 17. He was a councillor in the Thanjavur Municipal Corporation. A hotelier by profession, Metha's candidature for mayorship is being supported by leading office-bearers of the Thanjavur City unit of DMK, sources said.

Other names like that of K Neelakandan, deputy secretary of Thanjavur city DMK unit, and K Elangovan, who got elected from Ward 34, are also doing the rounds.

The final word has to come from the party high command, cadre said.

As regards the mayor post of Kumbakonam Corporation, quite a few names like S P Tamizhazhagan, former chairperson of Kumbakonam Municipality, R Krishnamurthy and R Dakshinamurthy, organisers of DMK youth wing of Thanjavur north district, are doing the rounds. According to sources, the name of Tamizhazhagan has already been decided by the party high command and a formal announcement is awaited.

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