Former DCC president and former MLC R. Gopinath was killed when his SUV had a collision with a mini-van at Cheelapalle village near here on Monday.
According to his family sources, Gopinath (72) left for Chennai from his residence in Chittoor town in the early hours preferring self-drive of his SUV due to non-availability of a family driver. At noon, he reached the dairy unit owned by him at Vellore and after speaking to workers there, he started returning to Chittoor.
At Cheelapalle village of Gudipala mandal, Gopinath’s vehicle collided with the mini-van carrying empty liquor bottles towards Chennai. Locals at the area identified the injured leader and informed the Gudipala police. He was immediately taken to the Christian Medical College Hospital at Vellore where he died. His body is likely to be handed over to the family members after autopsy on Tuesday.
Gopinath was the DCC president for about a decade in the 1990s. In 1985, when N.T. Rama Rao’s Telugu Desam went for mid-term elections, Gopinath won the Chittoor seat as the Congress candidate. In 1999, he contested as an MP against D.K. Audikesavulu Naidu (TDP) and lost by a slender margin. During Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s tenure as the Chief Minister, he was made an MLC. In 2014, Gopinath joined the YSR Congress and tried in vain for the party ticket to contest as an MLA from Chittoor.
Later, he was not active in politics. Gopinath is survived by wife, a son and two daughters.
