Telangana Lawyer Becomes Sydney Mayor

Sandhya Reddy, a law graduate from Telangana, has been elected as Mayor of Sydney's Strathfield municipality.

An alumna of Osmania University, Reddy was elected as the 73rd Mayor of the Strathfield Council in Sydney on Tuesday. She will hold the post for two years.

Hailing from Mellareddygudem village in Vikarabad district, she studied at Osmania University and Stanley College in Hyderabad before moving to Australia in 1991.

She later started practising as an immigration lawyer and became involved in social and political affairs.

Sandhya Reddy, also known as Sandy Reddy, was first elected as a Strathfield councillor in December 2021. In September 2023, she was elected Deputy Mayor. She became the first Indian woman to be elected to the post.

She retained her council seat in September 2025 and held the post until her election as mayor.

After her election as Mayor, Reddy told Australian media that it is an honour. She said she was pleased to get the opportunity to serve the Strathfield local government area.

According to a report by ‘The Australia Today’, she holds a Bachelor of Law and a Master of Anthropology, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Migration Law from the Australian National University. She has also operated an education and migration services practice while raising her family in Strathfield.

Strathfield is Sydney’s most culturally diverse local government area. Covering about 14 square kilometres in Sydney’s inner west, it has an estimated population of about 46,000.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President K. T. Rama Rao has congratulated Sandhya Reddy on being elected as Mayor.

"Hearty congratulations to Sandy Reddy garu on being unanimously elected as the Mayor of Strathfield, Australia. Sandy Reddy, a Telangana native, holds the distinction of being the first person from India to be elected as a Mayor in Australia. Wishing Sandy Reddy a successful tenure in public service. May she continue to achieve greater heights and bring pride to Telangana through her service and leadership," Rama Rao in a post on X.