Kolagani Srinivas elected Mayor of Karimnagar, Sunil Rao Deputy Mayor

Karimnagar

Bringing an end to three days of intense political suspense, Kolagani Srinivas was on Monday elected as the Mayor of the Karimnagar Municipal Corporation, while Yadagiri Sunil Rao was elected as the Deputy Mayor.

The Municipal Corporation has a total strength of 69 votes, including ex-officio members. With the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which has nine seats in the Corporation, staying away from the election process, the BJP nominee Kolagani Srinivas secured the support of 34 members and was declared elected as Mayor. Sunil Rao was similarly elected as Deputy Mayor.

The selection of the mayoral candidate witnessed intense internal deliberations within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). As the Mayor’s post falls under the BC-General category, party leaders initially considered aspirants from the Mudiraj and Padmashali communities. There was also a view that preference should be given to leaders with long-standing association with the Sangh Parivar. Among the newly elected corporators, Srinivas was identified as a leader who has consistently maintained close ties with both the Sangh and the party organisation, leading to the finalisation of his name.

Profile of the Mayor Kolagani Srinivas

Kolagani Srinivas, 37, was born in June 1989 in Theegalaguttapalli village of Karimnagar district. He holds postgraduate degrees in MBA and MSW and has been associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) since childhood, actively participating in its shakhas. He completed his primary RSS training in 2013.

Deeply influenced by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda, Srinivas engaged in various service activities from a young age. Through platforms such as the National Service Scheme (NSS), National Youth Project (NYP) and Ekta Parishad, he participated in youth development, environmental protection and community outreach programmes. He has donated blood 15 times.

During his student years, Srinivas was active in campus politics. Between 2005 and 2007, he worked with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), taking up student-related issues. From 2007 to 2009, he was associated with the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), participating in youth mobilisation programmes.

He served as an NSS volunteer from 2007 to 2009 and was adjudged Best Volunteer by Kakatiya University in 2010. In 2009, he attended the National Integration and Peace Camp held in Assam and participated in several national-level camps conducted in Lakshadweep, Bengaluru, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Haryana and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Between 2009 and 2013, he was associated with Ekta Parishad and worked on issues concerning tribal rights. In recognition of his services, he received the Bhai Ji Seva Puraskar from NYP in 2005 and the NSS Best Volunteer Award in 2010. In 2021, for his services during the Covid-19 pandemic, he was presented with the ‘Rakshak Award’ by Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.

In his political career, Srinivas served as BJP Mandal General Secretary from 2014 to 2019. He was elected as Corporator of the 1st Division in the Karimnagar Municipal Corporation from 2020 to 2025.

He also served as district convener for the Covid vaccination drive in 2021, Karimnagar Town-1 Convener between 2023 and 2024, State General Secretary of NIFFA in 2024, and in-charge of the Choppadandi Mandal Sarpanch elections in 2025. Recently elected as Corporator from the 2nd Division, Kolagani Srinivas has now taken charge as the Mayor of Karimnagar.