Prabhakar frontrunner for Chennai Mayor post

Chief Minister and AIADMK general secretary J Jayalalithaa, who is recuperating at a private hospital here since last week, has announced a few big names like former MLA JCD Prabhakar and exMP Balaganga for the wards of the world’s oldest corporation for which goes to the polls on October 19. 

Prabhakar, who had contested unsuccessfully against DMK Treasurer MK Stalin in Kolathur in the Assembly election, is tipped to be cadre’s favorite to run for the office of Chennai Mayor, who would be elected through indirect election on November 2. 

An old-timer since the days of MGR, Prabhakar, who has had an innings in Moopanar’s TMC too, has been fielded in Ward 80, while the former Rajya Sabha MP would run for councillorship from Ward 78. 

Former MLAs KP Kanda (Ward 184), VNP Venkataraman (Ward 166) and K Kuppran (Ward 7) are other prominent names in the poll fray in the state capital, where the memories of the December 2015 floods would return to haunt the ruling party. 

That AIADMK has been meticulous in its candidates selection could be comprehended from the fact that it has retained only around 25 per cent of sitting councillors. 

Elsewhere in Coimbatore, a traditional bastion of AIADMK, PhD holder S Sharmila, whose spouse Chandrasekaran is considered a close associate of Local Administration Minister SP Velumani, is frontrunner for Mayoral candidature. 

Salem Mayor Savundappan (Ward 56), Thanjavur Mayor Savithiri Gopal (Ward 23), Tiruchy Mayor MSR Jaya (Ward 51) are among the lucky few who had not featured in the hit list in this local body election.