Four-cornered contest in Coimbatore South

COIMBATORE: MNM chief Kamal Haasan will be fighting a four-cornered battle with high profile opponents Vanathi Srinivasan (50), president of BJP’s mahila morcha, businessman Mayura Jayakumar (47) of Congress, and industrialist Challenger R Doraisamy (62) of AMMK for a seat in the Assembly from the Coimbatore South constituency.

Vanathi Srinivasan, who ended up as the second runner up in 2016, is confident of victory this time with the support of AIADMK.  The advocate-politician has been active on the ground by taking part in several initiatives like organising job fairs. This confidence was reflected in the manner in which BJP bargained hard with AIADMK for the seat.

AIADMK candidate Amman K Arjunan won here in 2016 with a margin of 17,419 votes. The party convinced Arjunan to shift to Coimbatore North, but the move did not go down well with a section of his supporters and they resorted to protest seeking the constituency back. The development set off speculation that AIADMK cadre are reluctant to work for Vanathi’s victory. 

Leaders from both parties dismiss the charge. Kamal Haasan, on the other hand, is banking on his deputy R Mahendran’s decent show in the constituency during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The MNM vice president secured 23,838 votes in this Assembly segment, which comes under Coimbatore Parliamentary constituency. 

However, he was a distant third after CPI(M)’s PR Natarajan who secured 64,453 votes and BJP’s CP Radhakrishnan who polled 46,368 votes. Both, Kamal and Vanathi have kickstarted their campaign. This is the first time a popular actor is contesting in an Assembly election in Coimbatore and it remains to be seen if Kamal’s ‘Ulaganayagan’ charm wins over the voters.

In the DMK front, Congress candidate Mayura S Jayakumar, who lost to AIADMK candidate in 2016, is trying his luck again. In 2011, he contested in Singanallur but lost. Considered to be a fierce competitor, Jayakumar hopes DMK’s backing will help him cross the line. AMMK’s Challenger R Doraisamy, who won here in 2011 when he contested on an AIADMK ticket, is also expected to put up a tough fight.

Muslims and Christians constitute around 25 per cent of the electorate. Dalits constitute 20 per cent. A large number of government employees stay in the area, and could turn out to be a deciding factor. Traffic congestion and parking are the major civic issues in the constituency.

Explaining the issues faced by traders of TK Market, K Muthuraj, district president of Kovai Managara Vanigar Sangam, said, “To ease congestion on arterial roads, flyovers are being built. Because of this, we are not able to bring goods to shops on time. Earlier, we completed loading and unloading work in two hours. But now it takes up to four hours. Traffic issues should be addressed.”

The constituency also has a large number of goldsmiths. B Muthu Venkatraman, president of Coimbatore Jewellery Manufacturer Association, said, “Around 55,000 workers are employed directly in making jewels, and 25,000 are employed indirectly. Tiny and small goldsmiths are struggling to survive due to lack of orders.” He suggested the government set up a dedicated industrial park for jewel-making units.