Why yum is is failing with error "TypeError: Parsing filelists.xml error: Start tag expected, '<' not found"

Issue

• Why yum is is failing with error "TypeError: Parsing filelists.xml error: Start tag expected, '<' not found"
• Why yum is failing with python traceback and the following error "TypeError: Parsing filelists.xml error: Start tag expected, '<' not found" ?

• Yum fails with following errors:

  Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/usr/bin/yum", line 29, in ?
   yummain.user_main(sys.argv[1:], exit_code=True)
  File "/usr/share/yum-cli/yummain.py", line 309, in user_main
   errcode = main(args)
  File "/usr/share/yum-cli/yummain.py", line 178, in main
   result, resultmsgs = base.doCommands()
  File "/usr/share/yum-cli/cli.py", line 345, in doCommands
   self._getTs(needTsRemove)
  File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/yum/depsolve.py", line 101, in _getTs
   self._getTsInfo(remove_only)
  File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/yum/depsolve.py", line 112, in _getTsInfo
   pkgSack = self.pkgSack
  File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/yum/__init__.py", line 662, in <lambda>
   pkgSack = property(fget=lambda self: self._getSacks(),
  File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/yum/__init__.py", line 502, in _getSacks
   self.repos.populateSack(which=repos)
  File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/yum/repos.py", line 260, in populateSack
   sack.populate(repo, mdtype, callback, cacheonly)
  File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/yum/yumRepo.py", line 190, in populate
   dobj = repo_cache_function(xml, csum)
  File "/usr/lib64/python2.4/site-packages/sqlitecachec.py", line 42, in getPrimary
   self.repoid))
  TypeError: Parsing primary.xml error: Start tag expected, '<' not found