`Kaun banega Vizag mayor': YSRC, TDP claim victory before results

Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) polls were held on Wednesday after a gap of 14 years. The results will be announced on March 14.

Vizag city witnessed 59.41 percent voter turnout in the elections. Out of the total 17,26,158 eligible voters in 98 wards, only 10,25,442 turned out to cast their votes.

In the first-ever GVMC elections in 2007, Vizag city witnessed 52.48 per voter turnout when the eligible voters in 72 wards were 11.36 lakh. The GVMC area has increased following the merger of Anakapalle and Bheemili municipalities and some villages in Vizag city. Therefore the number of wards has increased to 98 from 72.

TDP general secretary of the Vizag district Pasarla Prasad said the party candidates fared well in the four assembly segments. Vizag South MLA Vasupalli Ganesh Kumar however, switched his loyalty to YSRCP recently.

Surprisingly the party is believed to have performed extremely well in Gajuwaka, which is said to be a YSRCP bastion. The party is likely to win 12 divisions. The hunger strike launched by former MLA Palla Srinivasa Rao of TDP against steel plant privatization boosted the party image, Prasad said.

He said the party will win in 10 in Vizag West where senior TDP leader and MLA PVGR Naidu (Gana Babu) did a hectic campaign in the industrial belt. Similarly, it will win in 10 divisions in Visakha East where the local MLA Velagapudi Ramakrishna Babu was arrested by the police for preventing rigging by the YSRC leaders.

In Visakha South even after the MLA Vasupalle Ganesh Kumar moved to YSRC, the TDP gained supremacy and likely to win in 8 divisions. In Visakha North, the party will win in only 6 divisions as the local MLA Ganta Srinivasa Rao remained aloof from the campaign. There were allegations of rigging in some divisions by the ruling party leaders. "In all, we will win in 50 divisions and the mayor will be from Telugu Desam," Prasad said.

Similarly, the YSRCP in a social media release said it will win 63 divisions and two rebels would support them taking the total to 65 divisions. It also said TDP will win in 16 divisions. Similarly, Jana Sena and BJP combine will win in four divisions and CPI in one division, the release said.

Political experts say that since the voting percentage was 60 percent, there is a chance that YSR Congress Party may win in the elections. Had the voting percentage been over 70 percent, the opposition party could have fancied a chance.

Update:

TDP has announced Peela Srinivasa Rao as the mayor candidate for GVMC.