AIADMK general secretary J. Jayalalithaa will stick to her original plan (as announced on March 16) of seeking election from her native town Srirangam and she is getting ready with her manifesto. She is all set to launch her campaign from Tiruchy after filing her nomination on March 24.
As per the revised list released by her after holding marathon talks with allies, lasting for over 20 hours, on Monday, the party has sacrificed about 30 seats to allies including Vijayakanth-led DMDK, CPI (M), CPI, actor Sarath Kumar’s AISMK and AIFB. She has ceded about 14 seats including Gummidipoondi, Madurai central, Virugambakkam, Chelgalpattu, Ginjee, Cumbam, Tirupparankundram, Alandur to DMDK, while it gave back Dindigul, Kezhvelur, Perambur, Madurai south, Chidambram, Tirupur south to the CPI (M), Sivaganga, Thiruthuraipoondi, Srivilliputhur, Thali and Pudukottai to CPI, Ottapidaram and Nilakottai to Puthiya Tamizhagam, Tenkasi and Nanguneri to AISMK, besides few more seats.
Ms Jayalalithaa will be pitted against a novice N. Anand in Srirangam. Instead of Madurai as announced earlier, she would commence her campaign from Tiruchy on March 24 and would campaign without break till April 11. She has reserved two days to campaign in the city at the culmination of her extensive tour of the state. She has dropped presidium chairman E. Madhusudhanan, who was fielded from R. K. Nagar in the first list against former AIADMK strongman P. K. Sekar Babu who quit the party and joined DMK. Instead P. Vetrivel, north Chennai district treasurer, will take on Sekar Babu.
Former AIADMK legislator and veteran Saidai Duraisami will lock horns with deputy chief minister M.K. Stalin at Kolathur constituency. Kodavasal M. Rajendran is the AIADMK’s candidate for Tiruvarur constituency where chief minister M. Karunanidhi is seeking election, while another veteran J. C. D. Prabakaran would be fighting against finance minister K. Anbazhagan at Villiwakkam.
Party seniors O. Panneerselvam, K. A. Sengottaiyan , Pollachi V. Jayaraman and D. Jayakumar find place in the revised list.