Like father, like daughter

ERODE: In a rare show of public support, a man and his daughter were elected as village panchayat presidents in the local body elections in Erode district. M A Thangavel (58) is the president of Kullampalayam panchayat in Perundurai, while his daughter Kokila (31) will head Kalingayam panchayat in Gobi block. While Thangavel was reelected for another term by securing 657 votes of the total 1,004 votes polled, Kokila was in the fray for the first time. She won by a vote margin of 434. Both belong to the AIADMK.On his daughter’s entry into politics, Thangavel said, “Kokila’s husband Arulchandran motivated her to contest so that she could serve the place where she lived.”Thangavel said he was reelected because of the good work in the last term. He claimed he increased the number of streetlights in the panchayat from 27 to 236, tarred roads from one to six and laid 12 cement roads. Also, all the Central and State schemes were effectively utilised. On future plans, Thangavel said he planned to provide houses to 60 people under the Chief Minister’s Green House Scheme. “I will also seek the help of some entrepreneurs to establish textile units in the panchayat to ensure job opportunities to the public,” he said. Kokila said her main focus was on improving the water supply to the panchayat and providing household water connections.Lauding her husband for instilling confidence to enter the poll fray, she said, “I will make use of the administrative experience of my father to better the living conditions at Kalingayam.”