AIADMK’s incumbent MLA and Deputy Speaker V. Jayaraman entered into the fray this time when the party and he were facing allegations of shielding the accused in the Pollachi sexual assault case.
Mr. Jayaraman defeated DMK’s K. Varadarajan, registering his second consecutive win from the seat and fourth one since 2001. His victory has made the party hold the seat for the fifth consecutive term.
“This is the fitting reply to those who tried to divert the attention of voters by spreading falsehood and rumours during the election. I will continue to serve the people of Pollachi,” said Mr. Jayaraman after he was named the winner.
Though the number of votes he secured increased from 78,553 in 2016 to 80,567 this time, the margin of victory reduced from 13,368 to 1,725. Mr. Varadarajan, who secured 78,842 votes, trailed behind Mr. Jayaraman in the counting.
A resident of Thippampatty village, Mr. Jayaraman’s previous victories from Pollachi seat were in 2001, 2006 and 2016.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, AIADMK’s incumbent MP C. Mahendran had lost to DMK’s K. Shanmugasundaram in Pollachi parliamentary constituency, primarily due to the public outrage over the alleged mismanagement of Pollachi sexual assault case by the ruling party, and the DMK front had hoped that the trend might continue in the Assembly election, this time too.
