Representation of tribal candidates from Adilabad increased in Telangana Assembly

Adilabad: The representation of tribal leaders in the state assembly has increased dramatically with candidates from the Raj Gond community elected from two of the three constituencies reserved for recognized tribes (STs).

Due to the substantial population of ethnic tribes, Adilabad district is considered a tribal area. However, except in a few cases, the tribals did not get much representation of their community in the Legislative Assembly. The result was that their problems and demands were not debated. The government was not informed about their problems.

In the 2009 elections, two candidates from this community, Godam Nagesh and Athram Sakku, were elected from Bothh and Asifabad areas. In the 2018 surveys, only Athram Sakku, a Raj Gond, won the Asifabad constituency, while Rathod Bapu Rao and Rekha Naik, both from the Lambada community, won in the assembly electoral districts of Both and Khanapur respectively. Only one candidate from this tribe won in the elections of 2004 and 2014.

However, Kova Lakshmi, daughter of former minister Kotnak Bhim Rao, won against A Shyam Naik of Asifabad by a margin of 22,798 votes in the recently concluded elections. He punched the BRS bill. In fact, Asifabad area has been a stronghold of candidates from tribal tribes since it was reserved for ST in 2009.

Meanwhile, Vedma Bojju, another candidate from the Raj Gond community and leader of tribal rights organization Tudum Debba, won the Khanapur segment in her first attempt. Contesting the Congress candidature, he defeated A Rekha Naik, represented by BRS, by a margin of 4,702 votes.

Bojju, 37, created a record of sorts by winning in the Khanapur region after a gap of more than 30 years. Candidates from the Lambada community have preserved the electoral district of the Assembly from 1994 to 2018. Bhim Rao was the last candidate from the Khanapur community elected since 1989.