Chennai, Oct 5:
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president B Manickam Tagore on Sunday expressed confidence that candidates of the Secular Social Justice Victory Alliance would emerge victorious in both Madurantakam and Dharapuram, where by-elections are scheduled for October 6.
Speaking to reporters at Sathyamurthy Bhavan after paying floral tributes to freedom fighters Kodikatha Kumaran, VO Chidambaranar and Subramania Siva on their birth anniversaries, Tagore said the alliance’s internal assessment indicated a favourable outcome in both constituencies.
He said the intensive campaigning by the Opposition reflected its apprehension about the election results. According to Tagore, former Chief Ministers M K Stalin and Edappadi K Palaniswami were making repeated visits to the constituencies because they were worried about defeat.
Tagore also welcomed Chief Minister and TVK president C Joseph Vijay’s appeal against distributing money to voters. He said Vijay’s approach of meeting people directly by visiting streets and seeking their support without resorting to cash distribution represented a new style of politics and deserved appreciation.
Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Y S Sharmila visited Sathyamurthy Bhavan along with her husband Anil and met Tagore to personally hand over an invitation to their daughter’s wedding. She later interacted with the media.
Sharmila appealed to the people of Tamil Nadu to oppose what she termed “vote chori”, stressing that the right to vote was a fundamental right that belonged equally to every citizen, including the economically weaker sections.
She also alleged that the Election Commission was being controlled and claimed that 14 decisions had been taken without the concurrence of all the commissioners. Reiterating the Congress demand for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation, Sharmila said the party would continue its fight for people’s rights under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi.