NAGERCOIL: After the drubbing in the last Assembly election in the Nagercoil Assembly constituency, the ruling DMK has salvaged its pride by winning its maiden corporation election by winning 32 wards along with its allies
While DMK won 24 of the 52 wards in Nagercoil Corporation, its allies Congress and the MDMK have bagged 7 and 1 seat respectively to take its tally to respectable 32. Though the DMK’s Mahesh, an advocate and party’s Nagercoil city district secretary, who has been elected to the Corporation council from ward 4, is expected to be the first mayor of the Corporation, the council will have 11 BJP councilors including former chairman Meena Dev.
Since the BJP was facing this election after the party’s Meena Dev had served as the last chairman of Nagercoil municipality before it graduated into the Corporation, the national party was quite confident that the first mayor of Nagercoil Corporation would be a BJP functionary.
After the BJP’s M.R. Gandhi became one of the four BJP MLAs in the Tamil Nadu Assembly as he defeated former Minister and DMK’s Kanniyakumari east district secretary N. Suresh Rajan in the Assembly election in last May in Nagercoil Assembly constituency, the party was brimming with confidence. Unexpectedly, the BJP has lost its pride in the urban civic poll. While the outcome of this election has dented the image of Mr. Gandhi and the BJP, the DMK’s revival will surely be a great relief for Mr. Mahesh and Mr. Suresh Rajan.
In Padmanabhapuram municipality with 21 wards, the BJP and the DMK have bagged 7 seats each while the independents have been elected from 6 wards. The remaining one seat has gone in favour of Janata Dal. Hence, both the ruling parties have been left at the mercy of the independents to win the chairmanship and ‘winning their support’ will be a matter of pride for Minister for Information Technology T. Mano Thangaraj, who was elected from the Padmanabhapuram Assembly constituency only in last May.
“Since both the DMK and the BJP are resourceful, it’s going to be a windfall for the independents,” said a senior politician from Kanniyakumari district.
In the remaining 3 municipalities of the district also, the DMK has been left at the mercy of its allies, with whose support alone the ruling party can get chairmanship.
While the DMK, with its 11 seats, has bagged Colachel municipality with 24 wards with the support of the Congress, which has won 2 seats, the ruling party, having 10 seats in the Kollencode municipality with 33 wards, has to pacify the CPI (M) with 10 seats and the Congress with 6 wards. The BJP has won 5 wars in the bastion of the Left.
In Kuzhithurai municipality with 21 wards, the DMK, with just 5 wards in its kitty, has to again keep the CPI (M) (5 seats) and Congress (4 wards) in good humour if it has to get the chairmanship.
Of the 51 town panchayats with 828 wards in the district, the DMK has won 229 wards while the BJP has bagged 168 seats followed by the Congress with 163 wards. The main Opposition party, AIADMK won 64 wards and the CPI (M) bagged 42 seats.
The major jolt to the political parties is the victory of 155 independents, who will be given vice-chairman post by the political parties for the sake of getting their support for chairmanship.
The Naam Thamizhar Katchi that polled over 50,000 votes in the Lok Sabha by-election, has bagged 5 wards in the town panchayats in the district.
Published - February 22, 2022 08:49 pm IST
