Chennai: The ruling AIADMK on Thursday announced four candidates for the February 7 biennial polls to the Rajya Sabha to fill six vacancies. The party also announced its support to the candidate put up by CPI (M).
Announcing the names of N. Chinnadurai (party youth wing leader), L. Sasikala Pushpa (women’s wing secretary and Thoothukudi Mayor), S. Muthukaruppan (Tirunelveli district secretary) and Vijila Sathyanand (Tirunelveli district women’s wing secretary and Nellai mayor) on Thursday, AIADMK supremo and chief minister J. Jayalalithaa said her party would support CPI (M)’s nominee, conceding to the request by the Left party.
A CPI (M) delegation led by party state secretary G. Ramakrishan had met Jayalalithaa at her camp office at Kodanad on January 21 and sought AIADMK’s support for its candidate. On Thursday, the CPI (M) re-nominated sitting Rajya Sabha member T.K. Rengarajan.
During RS polls last year, Jayalalithaa’s AIADMK had supported the candidature of CPI leader D. Raja. The elections are being held to fill six vacancies as the terms of N. Balaganga (AIADMK), T. K. Rengarajan (CPM), Union Shipping minister G. K. Vasan, former Union minister Jayanthi Natarajan (both Congress) and Vasanthi Stanley and A. A Jinnah (both DMK) expires on April 2. DMK had already announced ‘Tiruchy’ N. Siva as its candidate.
