Chennai, March 25 – The opposition AIADMK appears to be gaining an advantage over its political rival, the DMK, by announcing its first list of candidates for the April 23 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. Edappadi K Palaniswami, the party’s general secretary, is seeking re-election from the Edappadi constituency for the sixth time.
In a series of events, Palaniswami announced that he would contest from Edappadi, his home constituency, once again.
He surprised everyone by finalizing seat-sharing arrangements with major allies, including the BJP, PMK, and AMMK, on March 23. He also announced a 297-point election manifesto for the Assembly elections and released the first list of his party's candidates on Wednesday.
The DMK, which has already finalized its seat-sharing arrangements with its allies, has yet to release its manifesto or announce its candidates.
Edappadi K Palaniswami, popularly known as EPS, served as the seventh Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 2017 to 2021.
The 71-year-old leader of the opposition in the Assembly has been representing the Edappadi Assembly constituency since 2011 as an MLA, and previously from 1989 to 1996.
He was elected as a Member of Parliament from Tiruchengode in the 1998 Lok Sabha election. He previously held ministerial positions in the Jayalalithaa cabinet, including those for highways and minor ports, and also served as the public works minister.
He has been the general secretary of AIADMK since March 2023. Born in Salem district, where the Edappadi constituency falls, Palaniswami comes from an agrarian family and identifies himself as a farmer. He entered politics in 1974, joining the AIADMK as a volunteer and gradually rising through the ranks to become general secretary.
K P Munusamy, the AIADMK deputy general secretary, has been fielded from Veppanahalli. He previously served as the Minister for Municipal Administration and Rural Development in the Jayalalithaa cabinet, and also previously held the party's Rajya Sabha seat (2020–21) before resigning to contest in the state assembly elections after 2021.
He has significant influence in the Krishnagiri district, where he has successfully contested in the past from Kaveripattinam, Krishnagiri, and Veppanahalli.
D Jayakumar, a former state minister who has also served as the TN Assembly Speaker, is contesting from his home constituency, Royapuram in the city, from where he was elected in the 1991, 2001, 2006, 2011, and 2016 elections for five terms. He unsuccessfully contested in the 2021 election. He currently serves as the organizing secretary of AIADMK.
The party's Rajya Sabha MP, C Ve Shanmugam, who is known for making controversial remarks, is a four-time MLA and a senior leader in the party. He previously contested and won in the Tindivanam constituency in the 2001 and 2006 elections, and served as the Minister of Education, Law, and Commercial Taxes from 2003 to 2006 and from 2011 to 2013 in the Jayalalithaa Cabinet. He is contesting from Mailam.
C Vijayabaskar, a medical doctor by profession, is seeking re-election from Viralimalai. He previously served as the health minister and has represented the Viralimalai constituency in the 2011, 2016, and 2021 elections, and was previously elected from the Pudukkottai constituency in 2001.
Dindigul C Sreenivasan has been elected from Dindigul in the 2016 and 2021 elections. He is the treasurer of the AIADMK. He previously served as the Minister for Forests from 2016 to 2021.
He was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Dindigul constituency as an AIADMK candidate in the general elections of 1989, 1991, 1998, and 1999 in Tamil Nadu.
Natham R Viswaathan, deputy general secretary of the party, previously served as the electricity and prohibition minister. He was elected from the Natham constituency in 1999 and consecutively won in the 2001, 2006, and 2011 elections. He has been renominated.
S P Velumani, currently an MLA from the Thondamuthur Assembly constituency, has also been renominated. He won the Assembly elections in 2006, 2011, 2016, and 2021. He previously served as the Minister for Municipal Administration, Rural Development, Law, and Implementation of Special Programs. He is currently serving as the headquarters secretary of AIADMK.
Former state minister P Thangamani, the incumbent legislator from Kumarapalayam constituency, was previously elected from Kumarapalayam constituency in 2011 and 2016, where he is contesting again.
Another former state minister, Sellur K Raju, has also been renominated from Madurai West constituency, from where he won in the 2011, 2016, and 2021 elections. He first won from the Madurai West constituency in the 2011 election.
K P Anbalagan, a former higher education minister, who is a five-term MLA, has been fielded from Palacode, where he registered his first victory in 2001.
