Date:17/12/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/12/17/stories/2008121755810400.htm

Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada

Ratna Bindu is Vijayawada Mayor

Staff Reporter

-PHOTO: RAJU.V.

Happy moment: Congress corporator M.V. Ratna Bindu gets a kiss from her daughter after being elected Mayor at a special meeting of the general body of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation on Tuesday.

VIJAYAWADA: Congress corporator Muttamsetty Venkata Ranta Bindu, a relative of Praja Rajyam leader Allu Aravind and a loyalist of Vijayawada East MLA Vangaveeti Radhakrishna, was elected Mayor in a smooth and unanimous election at the special meeting of the general body of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) on Tuesday.

The vacancy arose as a result of the resignation of Mallika Begum, a loyalist of MP Lagadapati Rajagopal, last month as per an informal agreement worked out in 2005 among the three main groups in the city Congress after the elections to the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation to share the post among their followers. The first year was given to CPI, which made Tadi Sakuntala the Mayor, while the next term of two years was supposed to come the way of Ms. Ratna Bindu, but Mr. Rajagopal managed to get Ms. Begum the Mayor’s post.Ms. Ratna Bindu’s name was recently cleared by PCC president D. Srinivas and Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, putting at rest speculations in the party that she might not be considered for the post in view of her relation with Mr. Aravind and some other corporator of the kapu community could be considered, instead.