With seat-sharing finalised between AIADMK’s coalition partners, the Tamil Nadu ruling party on Wednesday, 10 March, released the list of constituencies that its allies including the BJP will be contesting from. The BJP, which has been allotted 20 Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu, will contest in urban constituencies such as Harbour and Thousand Lights in Chennai, Coimbatore South, and Madurai North.
Thousand Lights Assembly constituency was won by DMK’s Ku Ka Selvam in 2016. Incidentally, Ku Ka Selvam was dismissed by the DMK in August 2020, after he met BJP President JP Nadda and hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He later formally joined the BJP and is likely to be fielded by the party in Thousand Lights.
Harbour, the other Chennai constituency given to BJP, has traditionally been a DMK bastion with former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi successfully contesting in 1989 and 1991. In the last Assembly Election, DMK’s PK Sekar Babu emerged successful from this seat.
Significantly, the BJP has not been given the Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni (Triplicane) seat, which the national party had sought. Actor Khushboo was expected to contest in Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni, where DMK Youth Wing leader Udhayanidhi Stalin, who is the son of party chief MK Stalin, is likely to be fielded. It is unclear if Khushboo will be fielded from another Assembly seat. Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni constituency has been allotted to the PMK.
In Coimbatore South, BJP is likely to field the party’s national women’s wing president Vanathi Srinivasan. She had contested from the same seat in 2016 but had lost to AIADMK’s Amman K Arjunan.
The BJP has not been allotted the Rajapalayam Assembly constituency, where actor Gautami was expected to be fielded. Rajapalayam has been retained by the AIADMK. Minister KT Rajendra Balaji will be contesting from here. The DMK’s S Thangappandian had emerged victorious in 2016 from this seat. It is unclear if Gautami will be fielded from another constituency.
The other seats BJP has been allotted include Thiruvannamalai, Nagarkovil, Kulachal, Vilavankodu, Ramanathapuram, Modakurichi, Thirukovilur, Thittakudi (reserved), Virudhunagar, Aravakurichi, Tiruvaiyaru, Ooty, Thirunelveli, Thali, Karaikudi, and Tharapuram (reserved).
(This story was first published in The News Minute and has been republished with permission)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)