The Tiruvallur (reserved) parliamentary constituency, comprising of six assembly segments, namely Gummidipoondi, Ponneri, Tiruvallur, Poonamallee, Avadi and Madhavaram, will witness a straight contest between Congress candidate, S. Sasikanth Senthil, a former bureaucrat who quit the civil services in protest against the functioning of the Narendra Modi government and joined the party in 2019, and the DMDK candidate K. Nallathambi, a former MLA in 2011, elected from Egmore constituency.
While the AIADMK had won this seat in 2009 and 2014, the Congress candidate, K. Jeyakumar, took the seat from the party in 2019. This time around, the Congress pulled off a surprise by fielding Mr. Sasikanth, who was credited with running the party’s ‘War Room’ during the Karnataka Assembly election.
The AIADMK, however, has allotted the seat to its alliance partner, the DMDK for the upcoming election. The candidates of the BJP and the NTK, Pon. Balaganapathy and M. Jagadesh Chander, are also in the fray.
The NDA, AIADMK-DMDK-SDPI and the INDIA bloc candidates have identified the need for an another government arts and science within the Tiruvallur parliamentary constituency, the absence of which has forced young people to travel long distances to pursue their education, desilting of Palaverkadu lake and generation of employment for young graduates in Tiruvallur.
While the Congress candidate Dr. Jeyakumar won in 2019 by securing more than 50% of votes over his rival from the AIADMK, the contest could be closer with the AIADMK cadre encouraged by the party leadership’s decision to snap ties with the BJP.
The DMDK general secretary, Premalatha Vijayakant, recently spoke in a campaign in Bazaar Street in Ponneri assembly constituency, which managed to enthuse the AIADMK and the DMDK cadre. She said that she took a ‘brave decision’ like former Chief Minister and AIADMK general secretary, J. Jayalalithaa, to ally with the AIADMK, despite being threatened and intimidated by the BJP.
Though an uphill task, the DMDK is hoping to take advantage of the chemistry between the DMDK and the AIADMK in this David Vs Goliath fight. The Congress, supported by the DMK, the VCK, the CPI, the CPI(M) and other parties in the INDIA bloc, is sitting comfortably with many, even in the opposite camp, feeling that the Congress’ lead is insurmountable.
Will the anti-incumbency faced by the DMK affect the Congress’ chances? Mr. Sasikanth said that he doesn’t see any such anti-incumbency on the ground that is worrisome. “I don’t see any anti-incumbency when I speak with the voters. They are seeing the big picture this time. DMK’s work during floods, providing monthly stipend to women and free bus rides are appreciated by the people,” he said.
The BJP candidate, Pon. Balagapanathy, said that there is a demand for a number of railway schemes, such as connecting Gummidipoondi-Sriperumbudhur-Tambaram stretch and another arts and science college as there is only one in Ponneri assembly constituency.
“The pollution in Gummidipoondi has become worse, owing to unrestricted emissions from industries. The State government has not addressed it. While the industrialists said that they are ready to resolve it, the government has not taken any step,” he said. He added that Tiruvallur district has agricultural lands on one side and sea on the other, along with industries and natural resources like sand. “The development of the port is quite important,” he said.
Mr. Balaganapathy added that the emergence of the BJP from the shadows of the Dravidian parties can be felt during the campaign. “The Modi wave is here in Tamil Nadu. En Mann En Makkal Yatrai by Tamil Nadu BJP president K. Annamalai has also worked big time on the ground. People know that the BJP and PM Modi are going to come back to power for the third time....the people also know that they want development,” he said.
The DMDK candidate, K. Nallathambi, has been consistently speaking about lack of employment opportunities for the youth in Tiruvallur and reiterated the importance of improving the living standards of the members of fishing community.
He also reiterated the fact that this is a straight contest between the AIADMK-DMDK alliance and the DMK alliance. “The BJP cannot be seen here at all. I have met 90% of the people and I don’t see BJP here,” said Mr. Nallathambi, adding, “The AIADMK-DMDK alliance along with Puratchi Bharatham, Puthiya Tamilagam, SDPI and Manithaneya Jananayaga Katchi has turned out to be an organic alliance. People are welcoming us.”
He added that desilting Palaverkadu lake and dredging the mouth of its creek should be carried out immediately to ensure that livelihoods of fishermen are improved.
