Congress releases first list of 21 candidates for Tamil Nadu Assembly polls

Chennai: Congress released the first list of 21 candidates for Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly elections on Saturday.

Tamil Nadu Congress chief KS Alagiri on March 7 announced that the party has reached a seat-sharing pact with Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and will contest 25 assembly seats in the upcoming Tamil Nadu elections.

Congress also selected the candidature of V Vijayakumar as the party candidate for the ensuing bye-election to the Lok Sabha from Kanyakumari Parliamentary Constituency. The by-poll was necessitated due to the death of Congress MP H Vasantha Kumar in August last year.

The party fielded Durai Chandrasekhar from Ponnen constituency, K Selvaperunthagai from Sriperumbudur constituency, AM Munirathinam from Sholingur constituency, JS Arurnugam from Uthangarai constituency, KI Manirathinam from Kallakurichi constituency, R Mohan Kumaramangalam from Omalur constituency, Thirumagan Evera from Erode (East) constituency, and R Ganesh from Udhagamandalam constituency.

Congress also fielded MRR Radhakrishnan from Vriddhachalam constituency, ST Ramachandran from Aranthangi constituency, S Mangudi from Karaikudi constituency, T Ravichandran from Melur, PSW Madhava Rao from Srivilliputhur constituency, AMSG Ashokan from Sivakasi constituency, RM Karumanickam from Tiruvadana constituency, Urvasi S Amirtharaj from Srivaikuntam constituency, S Palani Nadar from Tenkasi constituency, Ruby R Manoharan from Nanguneri and S Rajeshkumar from Killiyoor constituency.

The 234-member Tamil Nadu assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 6 and the counting of votes will be done on May 2.

Ruling AIADMK is contesting the polls in a pre-poll alliance with the BJP. DMK has joined hands with Congress. This time actor-turned-politician Kamal Hassan's party Makkal Neethi Maiam (MNM) is also in the fray.