Six candidates — four from the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led front and two from the opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK)-led alliance — were on Monday declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly.
Since these were the only nominations filed, the Returning Officers declared all six nominees elected unopposed on the last date for withdrawal of nominations. Election certificates were also handed over to the candidates announcing their victory.
Except candidates from the DMK and AIADMK alliances, no other parties could field contestants for the March 16 Rajya Sabha polls. A candidate required the support of at least 34 MLAs in the Assembly, and their nomination had to be proposed by 10 MLAs, making it difficult for smaller parties to enter the fray.
All six candidates had filed their nomination papers on March 5, the last date for filing nominations, to fill the six seats that will fall vacant next month. During scrutiny held on Friday, their papers were found to be in order and were subsequently accepted.
Those elected unopposed include Trichy N. Siva, a five-time member of the Rajya Sabha who will now enter the Upper House for a record sixth consecutive term. Other winners from the DMK-led front are Prof. J. Constantine Ravindran of the DMK, Christopher Tilak of the Indian National Congress, and L. K. Sudeesh, treasurer of the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) founded by late actor-politician Vijayakanth. Sudeesh’s victory marks the party’s return to Parliament for the first time in nearly two decades after it was founded in 2005.
From the AIADMK-led alliance, senior leader M. Thambidurai and former Union Minister Anbumani Ramadoss, who heads a faction of the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), were also elected unopposed.