The proposed no-confidence motion against Nellore Municipal Corporation mayor scheduled be moved on December 16 took an interesting turn with five of the YSR Congress party, who had earlier defected to the Telugu Desam Party, returning to the YSRCP again on Thursday.
What initially appeared to be a smooth change of guard in favour of the TDP-led coalition has now become unpredictable, forcing the TDP to go into a huddle and begin camp politics.
Nellore, once considered an impregnable stronghold of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), witnessed a reversal in the 2024 assembly elections when the TDP swept all local constituencies.
Buoyed by the mandate, the coalition partners initiated a move to unseat the incumbent YSRCP mayor.
The defection of several YSRCP corporators to the TDP created an impression that the mayoral post would inevitably fall to the coalition.
However, in a sudden twist, former minister P Anil Kumar Yadav and YSRCP rural in-charge Parvath Reddy Chandrasekhar Reddy held discussions with a group of corporators who had recently shifted allegiance.
Five corporators eventually returned to the YSRCP fold. The leaders, along with the returning corporators, met YSRCP chief and former chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday and pledged their continued loyalty to the party.
This development came as a setback to TDP leaders, who were confident of securing the required majority in the corporation.
With the latest realignments, the TDP now has the support of 39 corporators—just two short of the minimum number required to ensure the success of the no-confidence motion.
Realising that any further defections into the YSRCP could derail the attempts to move the no-confidence motion entirely, the TDP sought to shift the 39 corporators from Nellore into a separate camp.
Under the directions of Nellore (rural) MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy, the TDP is said to be shifting the corporators to a camp in Goa, where they are provided with all luxuries and of course, money.
The YSRCP is also moving its loyal corporators into a protective camp, to prevent any luring from the TDP. With five days remaining for the no-confidence vote, the political atmosphere in Nellore is tense.