Chennai: Tamil Nadu's main opposition AIADMK on Thursday released its final list of 16 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls and also named its candidate for the lone Puducherry Parliamentary constituency. The AIADMK has completed the exercise of naming nominees and allotting seats to allies, and party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami is all set to launch his election campaign from Tiruchirappalli on March 24.
In total, the AIADMK will contest in 32 segments and it has allotted seven constituencies to allies, the DMDK, Puthiya Tamizhagam and SDPI. Tamil Nadu has 39 Lok Sabha constituencies. For the Tirunelveli LS seat, Palaniswami announced Simla Muthuchozhan who was formerly with the DMK. She had unsuccessfully contested in 2016 against late AIADMK matriarch J Jayalalithaa from the RK Nagar Assembly constituency.
Daughter-in-law of former DMK leader SP Sarguna Pandian, Muthuchozhan joined the AIADMK recently. An advocate, she is also the only woman candidate announced by the AIADMK for the Lok Sabha polls. For the Vilavancode Assembly bypoll, the main opposition party has named a woman candidate.
The ruling DMK, out of the 21 Lok Sabha seats, it is contesting, has given tickets to three women candidates. Kanimozhi (Thoothukudi), Tamizhachi Thangapandian (South Chennai) and Rani Sri Kumar (Tenkasi-Reserved). Palaniswami named G Premkumar, a medical doctor, as his party candidate for Sriperumbudur and S Pasupathi, also a doctor for the Vellore seat.
The ruling DMK has named veteran leader T R Baalu and Kathir Anand, son of top leader and Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan for Sriperumbudur and Vellore constituencies respectively. The AIADMK top leader named G Tamizhvendan and U Rani for Puducherry Lok Sabha seat and Vilavancode Assembly constituency respectively.
Bypoll to the Vilavancode segment in Kanniyakumari district will be held on April 19 alongside the Lok Sabha polls. The vacancy was caused due to the resignation of Vijayadharani, who joined the BJP after quitting her MLA post. Besides Sriperumbudur and Vellore, Palaniswami announced candidates for the Lok Sabha segments of Dharmapuri, Tiruvannamalai, Kallakurichi, Tirupur, Nilgiris (SC), Coimbatore, Pollachi, Tiruchirappalli, Perambalur, Mayiladuthurai, Sivaganga, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari.
In the first list released on March 20, Palaniswami named nominees for 16 constituencies. It includes former MP J Jayavardhan (Chennai south) and ex-MLA, Dr P Saravanan (Madurai). Tiruvallur (SC), Central Chennai, Cuddalore, Thanjavur and Virudhunagar are the five seats earmarked for the DMDK.
Two other allies, the Puthiya Tamizhagam (Tenkasi) and SDPI (Dindigul) will fight one seat each. The All India Forward Bloc also supports the AIADMK alliance. Elections to 39 Lok Sabha seats in the state will be held on April 19.
