Kothagudem: Man defeats elder brother in family face-off in Kothur GP

Gram panchayat elections in Kothagudem district witnessed intense family contests and narrow victories, including a younger brother defeating his elder sibling in Kothur GP and an independent candidate winning by a single vote in Julurpadu mandal

Kothagudem: In a family face-off in Kothur gram panchayat of Julurpadu mandal during the third phase of elections held on Wednesday in the district, a younger brother defeated his elder brother.

The sarpanch election in Kothur GP saw Akkula Pedda Ramulu, supported by the CPI, contest against his younger brother Akkula Narasimha Rao, who was backed by a BRS-Congress-TDP combine. Narasimha Rao defeated his elder brother by a margin of 26 votes.

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Meanwhile, the mother of the two contestants, Akkula Naramma, her second son Akkula Chinna Ramulu and her grandson Rajesh, who contested as ward members in the GP, lost the elections. The family face-off in Kothur GP became a topic of discussion across the mandal.

In the election held for Nallabandabodu GP in the same mandal, an independent candidate, Gadiga Sindhu, defeated the Congress-backed candidate by a single vote. Of the 144 votes, 139 were polled. Congress supporter B Jhansi Rani secured 69 votes, while independent candidate Sindhu got 70 votes.

In CSP gram panchayat of Yellandu mandal, BRS supporter Bhukya Ravi Kumar defeated his mother Bhukya Sakku Bai, who was backed by the Congress, to win as the member of the sixth ward.

In Subhash Nagar GP of the same mandal, election was conducted for a lone ward. Of the 12 wards in the GP, 11 ward members were elected unanimously following an understanding between the Congress and BRS.

A contestant, Irpa Kotamma, who filed nomination for the eighth ward, remained in the fray despite persuasion from leaders of both parties who wanted her to withdraw. She defeated Congress supporter M Krishnaveni by a margin of 28 votes.