Puducherry, October 9:
All India N.R. Congress (AINRC) candidate Ashok Anand has established a commanding lead in the Thattanchavady Assembly by-election as counting progressed toward the decisive stages on Friday morning.
In Thattanchavady, AINRC candidate Ashok Anand secured 13,358 votes, opening up a dominant lead of 8,482 votes over Congress candidate E. Vinayagam, who stood in second place with 4,876 votes.
DMK candidate K. Sethu alias Sethuselvam was in third position having polled 2,664 votes.
Candidates fielded by Naam Tamilar Katchi and other parties have secured negligible vote counts as the ruling alliance heads toward a comfortable retention of the seat.
The leads remain provisional, and the final outcome will depend on the completion of all rounds of counting and the official declaration of results.