The DMK has wrested three of the six seats from the AIADMK in Pudukottai district.
Although the district returned AIADMK nominees from all the six constituencies in the last elections, three seats went to the DMK this time. The split in votes caused by Independent and the DMDK-People’s Welfare Front candidates appears to have tilted the balance in at least three constituencies in the district. This was apparent in the Pudukottai Assembly constituency where the MLA Karthik Thondaiman lost to the DMK nominee Periyannan Arasu by a margin of 2,084 votes. Mr. Periyannan Arasu, who is the district secretary of DMK, secured 66,739 votes while Mr. Thondaiman got 64,655 votes. An Independent, M. Chokkalingam, secured 22,973 votes.
This is the first time that Mr. Periyannan Arasu is being returned although he had unsuccessfully contested twice from the Pudukottai seat.
The Alangudi constituency to witnessed a similar pattern. Siva V. Meyyanathan (DMK) got 72,992 votes while the Gnana Kalaiselvan (AIADMK) secured 63,051 votes. The Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam which secured 11,387 votes split the votes here. The PMK nominee forfeited deposit.
In Tirumayam, S. Regupathy, former Union Minister of State for Home, secured 72,373 votes, defeating his nearest rival P.K. Vairamuthu, district secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, by a narrow margin of 766 votes. Mr. Vairamuthu got 71,607 votes.
It was a tough fight for Mr. Regupathy right from the fourth round of counting. Although Mr. Regupathy was running safe by a good margin in the earlier rounds, the AIADMK nominee posed a stiff fight in the later phase of counting.
Health Minsiter C. Vijaya Baskar retained the Viralimalai seat by securing 84,701 votes and won by a margin of 8,447 votes over his rival M. Palaniappan, DMK, who got 76,254 votes. However, his margin of victory suffered a sharp downswing. In the last election in 2011, he defeated S. Regupathy by a margin of 39,303 votes.
Aranthangi is another constituency which witnessed a stiff fight all through. E. Rathinasabhapathy of AIADMK secured 69,905 votes defeating T. Ramachandran (Congress) by a margin of 2,291 votes. The Congress nominee, who is the son of senior party leader and six time MLA from the constituency Su. Tirunavukkarasar, got 67,614 votes, posing a stiff fight.
In Gandharvakaottai, B. Arumugam of the AIADMK polled 64,043 votes, 3,947 more than his DMK rival K. Anbarasan who secured 60,996 votes. The BJP and PMK candidates forfeited their deposit.
