The ruling DMK on Sunday announced three candidates for the biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha from Tamil Nadu. The party allotted one seat to its ally, the Congress.
A total of six seats, including three represented by the AIADMK and another three by the DMK, are falling vacant, and the polls are slated for next month. The AIADMK, with its strength in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, could elect two candidates in the polls.
In a statement, DMK president and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced R. Girirajan, the party’s legal wing secretary, and S. Kalyanasundaram, the party’s Thanjavur north district unit secretary, as the new candidates. Sources said Mr. Kalyanasundaram sundaram was given an opportunity to blunt the criticism that no representation was given to MLAs from the erstwhile composite Thanjavur district in the Tamil Nadu Cabinet. K.R.N. Rajeshkumar, a Rajya Sabha member and the party’s Namakkal east unit head, whose tenure is ending, has been re-nominated.
The DMK has not re-nominated outgoing MPs - party spokesperson T.K.S. Elangovan and organisation secretary R.S. Bharathi. Mr. Elangovan had also represented the party in the Lok Sabha after his election from the North Chennai constituency in 2009. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2016 along with Mr. Bharathi, who had contested unsuccessfully from the South Chennai Lok Sabha constituency in 2009.
Party sources said Mr. Elangovan had approached the Chief Minister a few days ago with a request for a second term, but it was not considered.
In the AIADMK, the tenure of A. Navaneethakrishnan, former Advocate General; S.R. Balasubramoniyan, who joined the DMK after many years with the Congress and the Tamil Maanila Congress; and A. Vijayakumar is coming to an end.
