Senior TDP leader and former minister Chintakayala Ayyannapathrudu filed nominations for the post of Assembly speaker on Friday. His nomination papers were given to the returning officer in the Assembly by deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan, ministers Nara Lokesh, and others were present.

The election to the speaker post would be held on Saturday after three more members took their oath as members of the state Assembly. On Friday, 172 members took the oath. Pro-tem speaker Gorantla Butchaiah Chowdary administered the oath to the MLAs on the day.

Ayyannapathrudu said that he had filed the nominations for the post of the speaker. I don’t know if anyone else would also file the nominations. We have to wait and see, he said. He further said that he would try to protect the honour attached to the speaker post. I would be apolitical when I sit in the chair, Ayyannapathrudu said.

A strong TDP leader, Ayyannapathrudu won from the Narsipatnam Assembly constituency, six terms since 1983. He won again in 1985, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2014, and 2024. He lost to the Congress in 1989 and 2009 and to the YSR Congress in the 2019 general elections. He had been the TDP candidate from this assembly constituency since 1983.

Meanwhile, the TDP is likely to retain the deputy speaker post also. Though there was a talk that the TDP would leave the deputy speaker post to Jana Sena or BJP, the talk now is that the TDP wants the deputy speaker post too to the party. The TDP wants to give whip posts to the BJP and Jana Sena instead.

It was felt that former minister and former deputy speaker Mandali Buddha Prasad, would be the deputy speaker for the second term. He won from Avanigadda Assembly constituency this time on Jana Sena ticket. He left the Congress in 2014 and joined the TDP. He won the election and became the deputy speaker in the house.