ANANTAPUR: Overcoming the shocking defeat in the Zilla Parishad on Monday, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in the district succeeded in keeping its flock (MPTCs) together to win 26 Mandal Parishad president posts on Tuesday. The Congress bagged 24 MPP posts and the CPI got one post.

Election of MPPs and mandal vice-chairmen was postponed in 11 mandals due to lack of quorum, as the parties holding the majority MPTCs failed to finalise their candidates for the two posts.

Of the 26 MPPs bagged by the TDP, the Chennekothapalli MPP post was won by the party in the lottery method as both the TDP and the Congress had six MPTCs each. In the 24 MPPs bagged by the Congress, the party arrived at an understanding with the TDP at Talupula to share the MPP post for two-and-half years each.

The first term went to the Congress in unofficial lottery. The Congress had six MPTCs, followed by the TDP with five MPTCs and the CPI (M) one.

Short of majority

Efforts of local Congress leaders to re-enact the `ZP gamble' in a several mandals where the party was short of a majority to bag MPP posts were reportedlydiscouraged by the district leadership. Efforts were allegedly made to poach TDP MPTC members in Kalyanadurg but the tactics of the TDP leadership there prevailed upon the Congress game plan. In Settur, where the Congress and the TDP had five MPTCs each and CPI one, the MPP post was given to the lone member of the Left party supported by the Congress.

The 11 mandals where the MPP and mandal vice chairmen elections were postponed are Gooty, Guntakal, Pamidi, Singanamala, Roddam, Penukonda, Kanganapalli, Brahmasamudram, Yellanur, Dharmavaram, and Mudigubba. Of these, the TDP had majority MPTCs in the first eight mandals and the Congress in the last three.

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