The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam m(DMK), which released on Friday its list of candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls, has apparently reposed its faith in veterans instead of testing its electoral fortunes by fielding débutantes.
Of the 22 Assembly segments in four districts, the DMK has fielded its candidates in 13 constituencies including two ‘new faces’ while veterans have been given the opportunity again in all other segments.
As expected, the DMK has fielded M. Appavu, 3-time MLA – 1996, 2001 and 2006 from the coastal constituency of Radhapuram – again. Though he lost the 2016 Assembly polls to AIADMK’s I.S. Inbadurai by a wafer thin margin of just 49 votes, his legal fight in the Madras High Court led to recounting of votes. However, the Supreme Court, which had earlier advised the Courts across the country to complete trials in election petitions within six months, has restrained the Madras High Court from declaring the recounting results over the past one year.
“The DMK will comfortably emerge victorious this time in Radhapuram segment,” Mr. Appavu said.
Former Speaker R. Avudaiyappan, who was decimated by AIADMK’s Esakki Subbiah in 2011 by a massive margin of 24,609 votes in Ambasamudram constituency, is facing again the same opponent, who is quite popular and has done a lot of election-oriented groundwork in this segment over the past one year.
Former Minister and sitting MLA of Palayamkottai T.P.M. Mohideen Khan, who has been elected to the Assembly four times successively from 2001, has been denied ticket this time as the DMK has picked party’s Tirunelveli city district secretary Abdul Wahab for the job.
Sitting MLA A.L.S. Lakshmanan, son of former Mayor A.L. Subramanian, has been fielded in Tirunelveli constituency where he takes on BJP’s Nainar Nagenthran again.
In neighbouring Tenkasi district, former minister and sitting MLA Poongothai Aladi Aruna has been nominated in Alangulam constituency while DMK’s Tenkasi south district secretary Sivapadmanathan, who was very active in the party-related works, was leading in the race for this ticket.
The Sankarankovil (Reserved) segment has gone to E. Raja of Melagaram near Tenkasi, an advocate.
In Thoothukudi, DMK’s heavyweight and sitting MLA Anita R. Radhakrishnan, known in the party circle as ‘good organiser’ of party’s mega events, has got the opportunity again to test his electoral fortunes in Tiruchendur segment.
Interestingly, former MLA of Vilaathikulam, Markandeyan, who defected to the DMK from the AIADMK recently, has been given ticket to contest in the segment again while sitting MLA of Ottapidaaram (Reserved) constituency Shanmugaiah has been fielded again.
In Thoothukudi, sitting MLA and former minister Geetha Jeevan has been re-nominated.
In Kanniyakumari district, sitting MLAs Austin of Kanniyakumari, Suresh Rajan of Nagercoil and Mano Thangaraj of Padmanabhapuram have been fielded again.
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