Chennai,  Around a year after the brutal murder of her husband, the President of Kunnathur panchayat in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli district, K. Chithra was elected unopposed to the post.

P. Krishnarajan, 51, and his accomplice A. Munayasamy, 40, were hacked to death in the outskirts of the village on October 11, 2020.

Krishnarajan was popular in the area and was elected unopposed as panchayat President in his maiden attempt in the rural local body elections of 2019.

Police said that Krishnarajan and Muniyasamy were murdered by K. Senthil, the brother of criminal Varichiyur Selvam, and Balaguru, as Senthil's wife Malarvizhi, had contested the post of Panchayat Union Chairperson but lost after Krishnarajan did not extend his support to her. Balaguru was nursing a grudge against Krishnarajan as he was not given a contract.

Talking to IANS, Chithra, 50, said: "My husband had a lot of dreams on developing the panchayat but he was murdered for no reason and now I will take up the mantle and carry forward the good work that he had done for the people of the village. We will not be cowed down by any threats and for your information, the entire village is supporting me."

She said that she would strive to bring in development to the village as it was the dream of her husband and that she would also nurse the same dream and work hard for the uplift of the village and its population.