Adilabad: Khanapur to become municipality again

Adilabad: Once again election heat had gripped the erstwhile Adilabad district as the State Election Commission has announced the schedule of municipal elections. The municipal officials are busy in making election arrangements, preparing voters lists according to the reservations for the ensuing municipal elections.

Voters list will be released on December 30 and objections on the voters list if any will be received from December 31 to January 2; objections will be cleared by January 3; and final list will be released on January 4.

Municipal election notification will be released on January 7 and nominations will be received from January 8 to10. Nomination verification will be held on January 11; deadline for nominations withdrawal is January 14. Elections will be held on January 22 and counting of votes will be held on January 25.

In the erstwhile Adilabad district, elections will be held in 11 municipalities - Adilabad municipality; Nirmal municipality, Khanapur and Bhainsa in Nirmal district; Mancherial municipality, Bellampalli, Chennur, Luxettipeta, Kyathan Palli and Naspur municipalities in Mancherial district; and Kagaznagar municipality in Komaram Bheem Asifabad district.

There are 12 municipalities in the joint Adilabad district and elections will be held for 11 municipalities. Due to a court case, elections will not be held in Mandamarri municipality.

Elections will be held for 49 wards in Adilabad municipality, for 36 wards in Mancherial, in 34 wards in Bellampalli, 18 wards in Chennuru, 15 wards in Luxettipet, 22 wards in Kyathanpalli, and 25 wards in Naspur municipality.

In Nirmal district, elections will be held for 42 wards in Nirmal municipality, 12 wards in Khanapur, 26 wards in Bhainsa and 30 wards in Kagaznagar municipality.

After several decades Khanapur gram panchayat is once again going to be a municipality. In 1958, it was called municipality and advocate late Abdul Hameed was unanimously elected as the first chairman by the officials and people. He was in the chair till 1961. After 1961, it was changed as gram panchayat and late Gangadhar Rao

Deshpande was elected as the first sarpanch. In 1963, Abdul Jabbar Khan was elected as the sarpanch, who belonged to a poor family and a noted secular leader. He worked as the sarpanch for 18 years continuously till 1981.

After Jabbar Kha, Uppu Narsimha Rao Joshi was elected as the sarpanch and worked from 1981 to 1987. In 1987-88 elections, Bakkashetty Ramulu elected as the sarpanch defeating Joshi. He ruled seven years as a sarpanch till 1994.

In 1994 elections, Vilas Rao Deshpande was elected as the sarpanch and continued for three years. After his death in naxalites' attack, by-elections were conducted in 1998, in which Vilas Rao's wife Shobha Deshpande was elected as the sarpanch.

After she was elected, she joined panchayat raj department services, taking the job opportunity given by the government following the death of her husband Vilas Rao in naxals' attack.

Following this development, vice-sarpanch Lakshmi Narayana was ruled as the in-charge sarpanch. In 2001 elections, Kalvakuntla Ratna Kumari was elected as the sarpanch.

After this, due to the untimely death of former Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh YS Rajasekhara Reddy and Telangana movement, elections were not held till 2014. After the formation of separate Telangana, elections were held in 2014 and sarpanch Satyanarayana, who was elected, continued till 2017.