BJP’s high stakes battle in southern Tamil Nadu
As BJP is pulling out all stops to make strong inroads into TN in this LS election, the party is concentrating on two key regions to open its account: the West and the South. In the South, it is looking to make its presence felt in constituencies such as Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari, Tenkasi, Thoothukudi, Virudhunagar, Theni, and Ramanathapuram.
In the constituencies of Kanniyakumari and Tirunelveli, the main contests are expected to be between the candidates of the BJP and the Congress.
TIRUNELVELI
The BJP is placing strong bets on Nainar Nagenthran in Tirunelveli, a well-known leader who was with the ADMK for a significant period. This LS constituency comprises six assembly constituencies, with 1.64 million voters.
Nagenthran, currently an MLA from the Tirunelveli assembly seat, is being challenged by Robert Bruce of the Congress.
Among his promises, Nagenthran aims to address the issue of clean drinking water for the people in the region and improve transportation facilities for school and college-going children in rural areas. He also emphasisedthat increased job opportunities and strong support for agriculture will help prevent caste or religious tensions in the region.
Nagenthran’s popularity and the possibility of a shift in votes from the AIADMK to the BJP could work in his favour, especially since the AIADMK candidate, described as an ‘outsider,’ is a new face. Congress’ Bruce is counting on the core DMK vote base and support from rural and minority voters to gain an advantage.
KANNIYAKUMARI
This constituency is known for its Hindu-Christian polarisation and has historically been a stronghold of national parties. It also comprises six assembly constituencies, with 1.57 million voters. In this election, both the BJP and the Congress have fielded prominent figures — Pon Radhakrishnan and Vijay Vasanth. AIADMK has nominated Nazareth Basilian from the fishermen’s community.
A BJP veteran and former Union Minister, Radhakrishnan aims to win this election by highlighting his eorts to bring infrastructure projects to the Kanniyakumari region and by being a voice for the people’s issues, hoping this approach will resonate with voters across all categories.
He criticised the DMK government for not addressing crucial needs such as improving road infrastructure and establishing a multispecialty hospital. He believes that people, including Christians, now have a positive perception of the BJP and welcome those who work for the region’s development.
The incumbent MP, Vasanth, who is seeking re-election based on his initiatives in the constituency and larger issues highlighted by his party such as unemployment, inflation and is optimistic about securing his second victory.
TENKASI
This reserved parliamentary constituency comprises five assembly constituencies with 1.52 million voters, including 77 lakh women voters.
The DMK has nominated Rani Srikumar, an anaesthetist working with the Government Hospital in Sankarankovil. It was reported that the performance of the incumbent, Dhanush M Kumar, was unsatisfactory, leading the party leadership to opt for a new candidate.
K Krishnasamy, who lost to the DMK’s Kumar in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, is now contesting on an AIADMK ticket. Krishnasamy is contesting for the seventh time in this constituency. Despite never winning a seat, he is confident of causing an upset this time.
The BJP has allocated this seat to B John Pandian, the chief of Thamizhaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam and a strong figure in Tirunelveli. Interestingly, both Krishnasamy and John Pandian belong to the same community — Devendrakula Vellar.
A close associate of Krishnasamy mentioned that John Pandian represents only about 10 per cent of the community, while the rest are likely to support Krishnasamy. Additionally, a significant number of backward caste voters, who are dissatisfied with the DMK MP’s performance, are likely to vote for Krishnasamy. Therefore, the contest is perceived to be between Krishnasamy and the DMK candidate.
However, Pandian expressed confidence in his strong position due to the Modi government’s decision to accept the community’s demand to group all subcastes under one umbrella and the prospects of Modi returning as Prime Minister.
Although the DMK candidate is a newcomer, the party’s core vote base and a major portion of the minority voters, including Muslims and Christians, are expected to support the DMK.