TUMAKURU: With Sunil Anand (53) winning the Mettupalayam seat in Tamil Nadu from Joseph Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), his relatives back home here are celebrating his victory and anticipating him to become a minister. His maternal grandfather BC Lingaiah was a former Mayor of Mysuru. Vontikoppal Circle is likely to be named after him.
Sunil an agriculturist-cum-businessman has his roots in Vadakeghatta village of Turuvekere taluk. One of his uncles from the same village, HB Nanje Gowda (Murthy), was a former Janata Dal MLA (1994). “Sunil keeps coming here for family functions and religious events. He is a very good organiser and pro-people,” Nanje Gowda told TNIE.
He is the only Kannadiga to win in the Tamil Nadu assembly elections this time. He was with the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam earlier, but sensing the momentum in favour of Vijay, he switched to TVK two years ago. He polled 75,664 votes and won by a margin of 7,768, defeating Kavitha Kalyanasundaram(67,896).
His family had migrated to Ooty and later settled in Mettupalayam, where he pursued agriculture and business. His paternal grandfather HL Linge Gowda was a municipality chairman in Mettupalayam and father Nagaraju, who succumbed to Covid, was a businessman. Besides Tamil Nadu, he has his businesses in Mysuru too and other places.
“I am a proud Kannadiga.
I keep coming to my village four to five times a year to worship my family deity Mayamma and Kalabyraveshwara of Adichunchanagiri,” he told The New Indian Express over phone.