Single-phase Puducherry election on Tuesday, voting to be held on 30 seats
Even without a robust chief ministerial face both Congress and BJP have expressed confidence in their parties ability to win the 2021 Puducherry assembly elections.
The union territory (UT) of Puducherry is scheduled to go to polls on Tuesday, April 6. The UT, which has 30 assembly seats, of which five are reserved for the Scheduled Caste candidates, will be voting in a single phase. Puducherry has been under President's rule since the Congress-led government collapsed on February 22.
A total of 1,558 polling stations, including 952 main and 606 auxiliary ones, have been set up in the UT in 635 locations.
Parties in the fray
Congress is contesting on 14 of 30 seats, its allies the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on 13, and both Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) and Communist Party of India on 1 each. Puducherry has an electorate of 10.03 lakh.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which has formed a coalition with the All India NR Congress (AINRC), and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), is contesting on nine seats, whereas the AINRC and the AIADMK are contesting from 16 and 5 seats, respectively.
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Actor-turned-politician Kamal Hassan’s newly-floated party Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) is also contesting the elections.
In the 2016 assembly polls, Congress had won 15 seats, AINRC 8 seats, AIADMK got 4 seats, DMK won only 2 seats and the BJP did not win a single seat. Hoping to make in-roads into the 2021 electoral fray, BJP heavyweights like JP Nadda, Amit Shah, and the Prime Minister himself have campaigned in Puducherry.
V Narayanasamy, the previous chief minister in the Congress-led government is not contesting the elections this year. The BJP-led coalition remains divided over the chief ministerial face, ANRC chief N Rangasamy, who used to be in the Congress, has declared himself as the chief ministerial candidate, but the BJP is yet to endorse him.
“AINRC has announced their chief ministerial candidate but NDA will decide the candidate for chief minister only after the elections are over,” BJP Puducherry election in-charge Nirmal Surana told HT on April 4.
Even without a robust chief ministerial face both Congress and BJP have expressed confidence in their parties ability to win the 2021 Puducherry assembly elections.