Kuppam (Chittoor district): Barely weeks after a video from Kuppam’s Narayanapuram village went viral showing a woman tied to a tree and beaten over a loan dispute, another video surfaced on Monday from Thammiganipalli in Santhipuram mandal. This time, it was found to be a staged act by a son and his mother to gain sympathy in a property dispute with their extended family.

The incident in Thammiganipalli involved Gangamma, the second wife of a man named Muneppa, who passed away on July 5. Following his funeral on July 13, tensions reportedly escalated over division of assets. The next morning, Gangamma’s son Suresh filmed her standing near an electric pole with drip pipes loosely wrapped around her and shared it on Facebook, claiming she had been tied up by Manjunath, the son of Muneppa’s first wife Munemma.

However, police investigation revealed that Manjunath was not at the spot during the incident. Munemma’s daughters were nearby cutting grass, and the video was taken in their presence. When officers from Rallabudugur visited the location, they confirmed that Gangamma was not actually tied but standing on her own. The entire act was staged to create pressure in the ongoing dispute over family property.

This incident comes in the backdrop of a widely reported case from Narayanapuram in June, where Sirisha, a daily wage worker from Bengaluru, was tied to a tree and beaten by four members of a local family. Her husband had taken a loan of Rs 80,000 from a villager and left without repaying. Sirisha, who had returned to her village to collect her son’s school certificate, was assaulted in public view. The video drew sharp reactions across the State. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had then spoken directly to Sirisha and assured her of government support, instructing police to take strict action against the accused.

In contrast, Monday’s incident in Santhipuram has been confirmed as a deliberate attempt to mislead. Police are now considering legal action against Suresh for spreading false information.