AP FM files paper for council polls

Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu Thursday filed his nomination for the election to the state Legislative Council.

The Telugu Desam Party re-nominated Yanamala for the Council election scheduled for March 12 and, accordingly, he filed his papers on the last day of nominations.

Yanamalas current term as MLC ends on March 29.

The TDP also chose Duvvarapu Rama Rao of Visakhapatnam, B T Nayudu of Kurnool and P Ashok Babu of Krishna district for the three other seats under the MLAs quota, party sources said.

Incidentally, Ashok Babu, a former leader of the AP Non-Gazetted Officers Association, joined the TDP Thursday.

TDP supremo and Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu picked up Babu for the MLC post.

Babu met Naidu at the latters riverfront residence here and thanked him for the Council nomination.

The former NGO leader then reached the Legislature and filed his nomination.

In all, election for five Council seats under the MLAs quota is slated for March 12.

Based on their numbers in the Assembly, the TDP will get four seats and the main opposition YSR Congress one.

The YSRC nominated former MLA Janga Krishna Murthy of Guntur district for the seat it could win.

As only five candidates are expected to be in the fray, the election could be a unanimous affair.

Meanwhile, Naidu named Samantakamani for the Council seat, to be nominated by the Governor.

She is also due to retire on March 29.

For the second seat to be nominated by the Governor, the TDP chose C Sivanadh Reddy of Kadapa district.

He is the kin of Animal Husbandry Minister C Adinarayana Reddy.

For the Council by-election to the Visakhapatnam Local Authorities Constituency B Naga Jagadeeswara Rao has been chosen as the TDP candidate.

The by-election was caused due to the death of sitting member M V V S Murthy.