Villupuram will witness a high-decibel contest between Law Minister C.Ve. Shanmugam and former AIADMK Rajya Sabha member R. Lakshmanan.
Mr. Lakshmanan, who recently joined the DMK, hopes to upset the Minister’s plan to win his third successive term from the constituency.
For the AIADMK, it is a challenge to keep up the momentum from its impressive victory in the Vikravandi by-election in 2019.
Formed in 1952, the Villupuram Assembly constituency has had 15 Assembly elections so far. DMK candidates have won the seat eight times and the AIADMK five.
Mr. Shanmugam won from Tindivanam in 2001 and 2006. After the constituency was reserved for the Scheduled Castes in 2011, he shifted to Villupuram, where he defeated K. Ponmudi of the DMK by 12,097 votes. Mr. Ponmudi then shifted to Thirukovilur from where he was elected in 2016.
The AIADMK polled over 69,000 votes in the 2016 election. The Indian Union Muslim League, an ally of the DMK, polled 24.94% votes, while the PMK and the DMDK polled 19.29% and 13.18% respectively.
It may not be easy this time for the AIADMK, which hopes to gain from its alliance with the PMK and the BJP. The flip side, however, is that political equations have changed in the last one month, with the DMDK exiting the alliance. Analysts believe the AIADMK’s alliance with the BJP may affect its share of the minority vote.
Though Mr. Shanmugam has served in the Cabinets of Jayalalithaa and Edappadi K. Palaniswami, the constituency remains one of the most backward regions. It is beset with socio-economic problems. Lack of industries has forced youth to migrate to other cities. The restoration of the Nandan canal, once the lifeline of 120 villages in Villupuram and neighbouring Tiruvannamalai districts, has been a long-pending demand of farmers.
The Vanniyars and the Dalits account for a majority of the population. Caste equations play a significant role, as it does in other constituencies of the district.
Both candidates belong to the Vanniyar community. The DMK has put up Mr. Lakshmanan to split the Vanniyar vote, sources say.
