Khammam: As expected, tension prevailed in some of the gram panchayats during the second phase of elections on Friday. TRS and Congress workers took on each other in these villages. The gram panchayat election of Koyagudem under Tekulapalli mandal witnessed tension.
Yellandu MLA Ms Haripriya Naik went to Koyagudem village to look after the elections. TRS activists raised objections about Ms Haripriya’s election campaign. Heated arguments took place between TRS and Congress workers. Some of the TRS workers even found fault with the MLA. Keeping this in mind, Congress workers raided the TRS Telkulapalli mandal office and destroyed the furniture there. TRS workers lodged a complaint against them.
In Bhagyanagarthanda under Kamepalli mandal, the agents and sarpanch candidates had an argument with the counting officials as there were not allowed to the counting hall. Some of the candidates tried to distribute liquor even on polling day. The police recovered liquor bottles from a car proceeding to Mallaram under Madhira mandal to distribute liquor there.
On the other hand, unlike Assembly elections TRS won 70 per cent gram panchayats in the second phase elections. The ruling party bagged eight gram panchayats in Tallada mandal such as Ramachandrapuram, Bhillupadu, Kesapuram, Reddygudem, Ramanjavaram, Kurnavelli and Anjanapuram and Mahakutami in Telagaram, Mittapalli and Mangapuram.
Independent candidate Sunnam Chiranjeevi, won from Thottipampu village under Annapureddipalli mandal with a margin of four votes.
TRS showed its power in Penuballi mandal by winning in 24 gram panchayats against 33 gram panchayats. The result is completely contrary to the December 7, Assembly elections where TDP got more votes in Penuballi mandal than TRS.
In Sattupalli mandal, TRS bagged 15 gram panchayats including five unanimous ones against the total of 21 villages. In Annapureddipalli mandal, the ruling party won in seven gram panchayats against 10 that had gone to elections and 15 against 25 gram panchayats in Enkoor mandal.
In Dammapet and Aswaraopet mandals, majority gram panchayats were won by the ruling party.
