<p>The 340-year-old Council of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) will on Friday get its youngest and first woman mayor belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community in 28-year-old R Priya with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) announcing her candidature for the top post. </p>.<p>An M Com graduate and daughter of a long-time DMK functionary R Rajan, Priya will be the third woman mayor of Chennai after Tara Cherian (Congress), and Kamakshi Jayaraman (DMK). Priya is also a relative of former DMK MLA ‘Chengai’ Sivam. </p>.<p>Priya, who won from ward no 74, will also be the first person from North Chennai, one of the underdeveloped areas of the city, to hold the Mayoral post. Till now, only those hailing from the south or central Chennai have held the post.</p>.<p>Not just Chennai, municipal corporations of Tambaram and Avadi, suburbs of the metropolis, will also have mayors from the SC community after the DMK reserved these seats for the marginalised community as part of its social justice plank. K Vasanthakumari will be the Tambaram mayor, G Udhayakumar will be the first mayor of Avadi. </p>.<p>In Chennai, M Mahesh Kumar will be the deputy mayor contrary to speculation that N Chitrarasu, a close confidante of Udhayanidhi Stalin, will be fielded. </p>.<p>The DMK also allotted one mayor post, 2 deputy mayor posts, 6 chairmen and 11 vice-chairmen of municipalities and 8 presidents and 11 vice presidents of town panchayats to Congress. CPI (M), CPI, MDMK, and VCK got one each deputy mayor post. Congress named Saravanan, an autorickshaw driver, as the mayor candidate in Kumbakonam. </p>.<p>Not just Priya, the DMK has chosen several youngsters to the posts of mayors and deputy mayors for which elections will be held on March 4. 36-year-old. Party insiders said many of the mayor and deputy mayor candidates are “loyal cadres” who do not have “much financial clout” and the decision was made by the party president and Chief Minister M K Stalin. </p>.<p>In all, 11 women from the DMK will hold the post of mayor and 5 women will be deputy mayors – the party and Congress will form councils in all 21 municipal corporations as they have an absolute majority. The party has allotted 6 deputy mayors to allies. </p>.<p>Of the candidates for mayor and deputy mayor posts, 20 are undergraduates and 11 are postgraduates. 42-year-old Dinesh, who pursued his masters in Australia, will be the Mayor of Tiruppur Corporation, while 36-year-old Mahalakshmi Yuvaraj, who quit Infosys to take a plunge into politics, will be the Mayor of the temple town of Kanchipuram. </p>.<p>In Coimbatore, A Kalpana, who hails from a humble background, has trumped heavyweights to be the mayor, while Vetriselvan, who won from ward no 92 where AIADMK strongman S P Velumani resides, will be her deputy. Party sources said Kalpana took a bus from Coimbatore to meet Stalin after her victory in the elections last week. </p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH videos:</strong></p>
<p>The 340-year-old Council of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) will on Friday get its youngest and first woman mayor belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community in 28-year-old R Priya with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) announcing her candidature for the top post. </p>.<p>An M Com graduate and daughter of a long-time DMK functionary R Rajan, Priya will be the third woman mayor of Chennai after Tara Cherian (Congress), and Kamakshi Jayaraman (DMK). Priya is also a relative of former DMK MLA ‘Chengai’ Sivam. </p>.<p>Priya, who won from ward no 74, will also be the first person from North Chennai, one of the underdeveloped areas of the city, to hold the Mayoral post. Till now, only those hailing from the south or central Chennai have held the post.</p>.<p>Not just Chennai, municipal corporations of Tambaram and Avadi, suburbs of the metropolis, will also have mayors from the SC community after the DMK reserved these seats for the marginalised community as part of its social justice plank. K Vasanthakumari will be the Tambaram mayor, G Udhayakumar will be the first mayor of Avadi. </p>.<p>In Chennai, M Mahesh Kumar will be the deputy mayor contrary to speculation that N Chitrarasu, a close confidante of Udhayanidhi Stalin, will be fielded. </p>.<p>The DMK also allotted one mayor post, 2 deputy mayor posts, 6 chairmen and 11 vice-chairmen of municipalities and 8 presidents and 11 vice presidents of town panchayats to Congress. CPI (M), CPI, MDMK, and VCK got one each deputy mayor post. Congress named Saravanan, an autorickshaw driver, as the mayor candidate in Kumbakonam. </p>.<p>Not just Priya, the DMK has chosen several youngsters to the posts of mayors and deputy mayors for which elections will be held on March 4. 36-year-old. Party insiders said many of the mayor and deputy mayor candidates are “loyal cadres” who do not have “much financial clout” and the decision was made by the party president and Chief Minister M K Stalin. </p>.<p>In all, 11 women from the DMK will hold the post of mayor and 5 women will be deputy mayors – the party and Congress will form councils in all 21 municipal corporations as they have an absolute majority. The party has allotted 6 deputy mayors to allies. </p>.<p>Of the candidates for mayor and deputy mayor posts, 20 are undergraduates and 11 are postgraduates. 42-year-old Dinesh, who pursued his masters in Australia, will be the Mayor of Tiruppur Corporation, while 36-year-old Mahalakshmi Yuvaraj, who quit Infosys to take a plunge into politics, will be the Mayor of the temple town of Kanchipuram. </p>.<p>In Coimbatore, A Kalpana, who hails from a humble background, has trumped heavyweights to be the mayor, while Vetriselvan, who won from ward no 92 where AIADMK strongman S P Velumani resides, will be her deputy. Party sources said Kalpana took a bus from Coimbatore to meet Stalin after her victory in the elections last week. </p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH videos:</strong></p>