Tamil Nadu: Vikravandi By-Election Intensifies amid Allegations

 Chennai: With less than a week left from the by-election to the Vikravandi Assembly constituency, the electoral fight intensifies with the Naam Tamilar Katchi, (NTK), headed by Seeman, writing to the Chief Electoral Officer listing out the alleged violations of the Model Code of Conduct by the ruling DMK and demanding action against the party.

The party’s lawyers’ wing alleged that the DMK had vitiated the atmosphere in the constituency by unleashing 10 State Ministers and 25 party district secretaries among the electorate and also regularly herding the people into marriage halls every day from morning to evening and locking them up there with a view to preventing the candidates and workers or rival parties meeting them to seek votes.

In the complaint to the CEO, they said the party bigwigs were not just staying inside the constituency but were overseeing the irregularities like detaining people in marriage halls like cattle and birds all through the day. The people were provided food and paid Rs 300 before being allowed to go home, they said.

Besides, the DMK was giving away free dress and jewels to the voters as a bribe and despite several complaints, no action had been taken against them by the authorities. They also alleged that the party was planning to distribute cash to voters as it was desperate to win the polls.

The NTK, which has fielded Abinaya, the candidate who contested against PMK candidate Sowmiya Anbumani at Dharmapuri in the Lok Sabha polls, has taken the fight seriously as Seeman himself had made a request to AIADMK and DMDK supporters to back his candidate.

Not only Seeman, even the PMK has been soliciting the support of AIADMK cadre, by terming the DMK as their common enemy. Though AIADMK leaders have been maintaining that their cadre and supporters would only boycott the by-election as per the decision of the party high command, both PMK and NTK are hopeful of getting their votes.

PMK founder S Ramadoss, too, had made a fervent plea to the voters of the constituency to hand over a victory to his party. The party has also invited leaders of its major ally, the BJP, to visit the constituency and seek votes for its candidate C Anbumani.

So BJP State President K Annamalai and others are expected to be there to meet the people personally in the next few days. The PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss has been meeting people regularly in the constituency that is considered to be a Vanniyar stronghold.

All top honchos of the DMK have already descended in the constituency to seek votes for the DMK candidate Anniyur Siva and the campaign has already picked up momentum with the Ministers visiting people and soliciting their vote.

There was also a talk that Chief Minister M K Stalin and Minister for Youth Welfare Udhayanidhi Stalin might visit the constituency and address meetings.