DMK Nominates First Dalit Woman For Chennai’s Mayoral Election

The DMK party on Thursday announced a 28-year-old Dalit woman R Priya will be it’s Mayor candidate for the Chennai Corporation. As the ruling party has a majority in the city corporation, Priya will hold the post of city Mayor soon. 

Last month, the DMK party had named candidates for 174 wards for civic body polls. Priya had the local body election from ward number 74. She will be the first Dalit and the youngest woman to hold the Mayor’s post in the Tamil Nadu capital. Earlier this year, the state government had passed an order reserving the Mayor post for a Scheduled Caste woman. She will also be the third woman to hold this post after Tara Cherian and Kamakshi Jayaraman. 

Priya comes from a political family as her grandfather Chengai Sivam was a former MLA from the Perambur constituency. Her father, R Rajan is also a DMK leader. Priya, who is an M.Com. graduate from Madras University, will be formally elected as a Mayor for Chennai Corporation on Friday.