Uncertainty hovers over Tirupati Mayor position

Tirupati : Uncertainty hovering over the position of Tirupati Mayor Dr R Sirisha, following the YSRCP’s poll debacle in 2024. Dr R Sirisha, the practicing doctor, joined politics as YSRCP activist after the party came to power in 2019 and rose to the position of Tirupati Municipal Corporation Mayor.

In the election for the municipal corporation in 2020, YSRCP won 48 divisions, leaving only one to TDP. YSRCP chose Dr Sirisha, who won from 27thdivision as its Mayor candidate and she got elected unanimously as Mayor, with the then city MLA Bhumana Karunakar Reddy’s support.

However, after the recent elections, several YSRCP corporators switched sides and joined the ruling TDP, while many YSRCP corporators remained neutral and keeping themselves away from YSRCP.

Against this backdrop, Dr R Sirisha’s Mayor position became shaky and triggered speculations on her future. Interestingly, Mayor Sirisha herself is unable to decide the future course of politics, whether to continue in YSRCP or to join TDP or Jana Sena Party. With only less than one year left for the mayor’s 5-year term to end, she also remained undecided on changing the loyalty.

The ruling TDP high command also seems to be not in hurry to disturb Dr R Sirisha, who belongs to Yadava, a backward community, who are sizable in Tirupati constituency. Though many TDP leaders are keen on changing Mayor Sirisha, party supremo and CM N Chandrababu Naidu wanted some more time to decide on Tirupati Corporation Mayor. This made Sirisha to continue in the position.