Chennai: While re-nominating 16 ministers, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa she denied tickets to 10 ministers including P Mohan, M Subramaniam, M S M Anandan and Abdul Rahim and fielded senior colleague Natham R Vishwanathan from Athoor instead of his traditional constituency Natham.
By announcing candidates for 227 constituencies and allotting the remaining 7 segments to various alliance partners, the AIADMK has shut its doors on Tamil Maanila Congress of former Union minister G K Vasan, which was hoping to join the ruling alliance. This makes the AIADMK contest all 234 seats on its own, first in the history of the party ever since its inception in 1971.
The AIADMK had contested all the assembly polls since 1977 in alliance with other political parties. This is also the first time that the party has contested more than 200 seats. The party had last contested 200 seats when it first entered electoral politics in 1977.
Ms Jayalalithaa also sprang a surprise by giving tickets to former ministers Senthil Balaji, who is being fielded from Aravakurichi, C V Shanmugam from Villupuram, K P Munusamy from Vepanahalli, Nainar Nagendran from Tirunelveli, C Ponnaiyan from Saidapet and N Thalavaaisundaram from Kanyakumari.
She also accommodated old-timers Mr Dindigul Sreenivasan, who will contest from Dindigul, former minister and Speaker D Jayakumar from Royapuram and Panruti S Ramachandran from Alandur in Chennai. Ms Jayalalithaa has also given tickets to 30 women including senior ministers B Valarmathi and S Gokula Indira.
Former DGP R Nataraj, who joined the party a few years back, is the candidate from Mylapore in Chennai while ‘Ma Foi’ Pandiarajan, who switched sides from DMDK to AIADMK, will contest from Avadi on the northern outskirts of Chennai. Former Deputy Speaker Paruthi Ilamvazhuthi, who had crossed over from the DMK after the 2011 state election, has been given the Egmore seat.
Another former legislator Kalaiarasu, who migrated from PMK in February, is the candidate from Anaikattu. Ms Jayalalithaa also allotted Tiruchendur to actor Sarath Kumar, while movie comedian Karunaas has been fielded from Thiruvaadaanai in Sivagangai district.
